Ontario announces funding for sex reassignment surgery.

[workstrength]

This is not a choice. You have to get approval from clinicians who have seen hundreds of others who have these feelings, show you can live and work (employed or as a volunteer) for two years... and make day to day life successfully as a member of the opposite sex. AFTER you show you have success doing this, then you get approval for the funding. Otherwise people end up with years of expensive therapy dealing with the incongruent lifestyle.

[trannykat]

manitoba funds srs as well, it's done in montreal.

[switcherx]

@trannykat doctors in Ontario don't recommend going to Montreal... I went to Britain. I know two girls who had surgery in Montreal and had serious complications... maybe that is due to being released from hospital after only about four days, compared to ten days I had in hospital in England.

[MeBitchgoddess]

Damn I hate people who think you girls or boys of the Transexual world choose to change your Gender. That is so wrong. It is not changing Gender. It is getting back

the Gender you should have been born as. I am a born Woman but that means nothing to me. A transgender Woman is every bit the Woman I am. We are all the Sisters of each other.

[Pyro6Burning6Gundam6]

@MeBitchgoddess amen. Can't hate a person for being who they really are, it's wrong to persecute anyone for doing what they believe in that'll make themselves happy, people who can't understand that are no better than nazis that caused mass genocide. all you nazis and go die!

[brendandawna]

It's a 'choice' people go through, who prove by living as the opposite sex for two years prior to getting approval. Someone just can't get the surgery by asking for it. How dumb would that be ?? People typically have life long behavioural proof that this is appropriate for them, and their mental health - to live as who they feel they are. Medical science approves of this, what does it say about YOU if you don't??

[brendandawna]

It's a 'choice' people go through, who prove by living as the opposite sex for two years prior to getting approval. Someone just can't get the surgery by asking for it. How dumb would that be ?? People typically have life long behavioural prrof that this is appropriate for them, and their mental health - to live as who they feel they are.

[mscanela27]

your not born a man your born male

[switcherxx]

Mr. Simon (at 2:32), believes it's a 'choice', making it sound simplistic and frivilous... It's a psychological need, one made after getting many hours of counselling, research, and believe me- manyof us try very hard to 'be' the male society wants us to be. Talk with some of us, we come from every walk of life - I know transsexuals who are docors and clinicians, a company CEO, and a politician.

It's not a choice, however maybe ignorance is.

[tutango16]

Adrina wants to finally become a real woman to walk around public park dressed as a prostitute?

[SaintsRow312]

this is fuckin wrong, GUYS READ THIS WHAT IF YOU END UP SO CLOSE BOUT FUCKIN A TRANNY IMAGINE THATTTTTTTT THIS IS WRONG!!!

[amajlesi]

so basicaly she/he (whatever) is gay, cuz she/he (whatever) is really a man! a man marrying a man, lol

[ZenStudent83]

@EvolutionOfRebellion

Quite frankly, but with all due respect, I would find it extraordinarily offensive and egregious if any amount of my taxpayer money went to "sexual reassignment surgery", instead of going to programs/systems/etc. for things that were undeniably and uncontroversially necessary - e.g. a cure for cancer, a cure for AIDS, better hospital efficiency, etc. From what I gather in this video, taxpayer money is going towards something that is fundamentally cosmetic, and that's crazy

[shaalis]

this vid is a prime example of "you really have to be one to understand fully the meaning of what this legislation means. Moreover, it is extremely important that studies keep going to see at which point SRS [sex reassignment surgery] is the answer to a person's mentality or scenario, or if it is seen as a go-to thought. However, I disagree with NENA Arsenault. If you are free to get the surgery in Canada, you should be able to have the freedom to also get it elsewhere.

[morneauchristian]

Based on Judith Butler's book Gender trouble, gender would actually be a social construction. I am now asking myself based on that book, where do transgendered people stand... I truly believe that having a penis or a vagina does not define your gender.

[switcherdawna]

But it's hard for some of us to 'define' ourselves, and live every aspect of our lives as a woman if we have a penis between our legs, and an 'M' on all of our identification.

[morneauchristian]

@switcherdawna

Exactly my point. Why the need to categorize and identify yourself.

[switcherdawna]

@morneauchristian because invariably whatever we do will be scrutinized... and we can gain self esteem and support from people who 'define' themselves similarly to us... if you have the time, check this video (if it works) it's a Law & Order SVU episode involving "Identity", and how doctors don't always do the right thing. megavideo(dot)com/?v=36BVE28N

[ninaarsenault]

Great video. Thanks for getting the word out.

[sehryn]

In my studies in psychology & neuroscience Ive found one thing known is that all embryos have a 'FEMALE' brain at conception

in TWO stages during embryonic development the brain may or may not be turned male, & is NOT found to be dependent on chromosomes. So NO BLAME

interestingly, the mothers body produces androgens that alter, or configure as it is referred to, the embryonic brain...but data says the more sons she has the less likely her body seems to support reconfiguring Xy brains to male

[carloslefuche]

i am so sorry but i am gay too and i am proud of it, but i don't think that founding sex change for transsexuals is ok. They should be founding other organisations that really need that money....i think a sex change surgery is just like a face lift or breast surgery....those are just things to make you feel good about your self but there's many other ways to do that not just by modifying your body....

[darliegoddess]

"i don't think that founding sex change "

It's "funding". Yeah , we should stop funding AIDs research because you chose to have sex so it's your fault.

".i think a sex change surgery is just like a face lift"

What an asshole ! Don't tell anyone you are gay, gay people would be embarrassed.

" but there's many other ways to do that not just by modifying your body"

Go ahead , tell us the "other ways " you idiot ! There are so MANY !

[alejandrox3]

omg chad looks like such a homo, and hes saying we shouldnt be funded for our surgery...wow that coming from a gay man

[sehryn]

Nature has dealt them a blow. So good on govt, but PLEASE only fund those who KNEW BEFORE puberty they were 'in the wrong body'...too many young people experience adolescent identity crises. It shldnt be made easy for them to take drastic action when it might, as is true for others previously, be a passing phase or even bisexuality mistaken for homosexuality. Transgendered people are NOT homosexual...this needs to be made clear through education and the development of tolerance within society

[darliegoddess]

"PLEASE only fund those who KNEW BEFORE puberty they were 'in the wrong body "

The ones that are kicked out of the house to have to hook on the streets to buy hormones or get surgery ? Transsexuals have to go through all kinds off assessment barriers already and they put themselves in incredible danger getting surgery. HBSOC , now WPATH. IExperts are the ones who should decide.

[sehryn]

Im completely sympathetic to transexuality. I have psyc degree with partic interest in brain development which is how I came to see research re how transsexuality develops My concern is that many people are ACTUALLY bi-sexual rather than homosexual, but because of self identifying in adolescence young people come to think they only have a choice of either OR, but that is NOT Always the Case. SADLY, some people had a sex change & came to REGRET later coz not truly trans/homo/sexual but bi-sexual

[darliegoddess]

" people are ACTUALLY bi-sexual rather than homosexual".

Well to be honest sexuality is not an issue in gender so people don't transition " because " they are homosexual. The problem you are talking about is being forced into a gender construct .

"& came to REGRET later coz not truly trans/homo/sexual but bi-sexual"

Well actually the SRS satisfaction rate is really high. You would have to site specific cases. Most often it is flagrant misdiagnosis by psychiatrists as in Walter Heyers case.

[sehryn]

Dont want to destroy anyone's life further

Appears apparent that only way to be accurate about teen transexuality is if PRE-PUBESCENT child KNEW they were in "wrong body" & had "wrong genitalia"

Once puberty erupts brain undergoes switching on of reproductive behavior & sexual attraction kicks in- its harder then to know if adolescents are identifying with gender type coz of social pressure, bisexuality, identity misconceptions, etc

by the time person is around 25-30yrs there's more accuracy

[darliegoddess]

"Dont want to destroy anyone's life further"

If they are transsexual & they don't get to transition you have just done that. Sorry but there is no escaping . You think just because you destroy their transsexual life that it's ok.

"Ats harder then to know if adolescents are identifying with gender type coz of social pressure, bisexuality, identity misconceptions, etc"

Sexuality is irrelevant. Transsexual children are often abandoned by parents or left to figure out things by themselves.

[sehryn]

by "destroying..life further" Im referring to cases Ive come across in my research where teens identified as 'gay' & had SRS then found out later they were actually bi-sexual -some came to regret SRS

In my understanding transsexual people most likely KNOW BEFORE puberty they are transsexual, as children they describe it as having the 'wrong' body

My main point is - there is a strong need to be VERY careful on behalf of adolescents who identify as transsexual for the first time during puberty

[sehryn]

adolescents who identify as transsexual for the first time in puberty need lots of support & education to help them make a decision they will NOT regret

IMO Any child who consistently identifies as TS in childhood should be given EVERY opportunity & SUPPORT to transition well BEFORE puberty!!!

my concerns are for those who suddenly 'discover' they're "TS" during puberty...Im worried for them & think they need to wait longer BUT there MUST ALSO be caring support in place for them at all times

[sehryn]

gay lesbian & bi youth already have enough to deal with due to atrocious bigotry in society & a very sad lack of education among the general public. They need support

oh..sorry, I beg to disagree re: TS does not involve sexuality or gender

our sexuality is In our brain!!! Although our chromosomes may be Xy XX or ??? our brain doesnt necessarily match...SEXUAL ATTRACTION occurs IN THE BRAIN!!!

Sexuality is inextricably entwined with Reproductive Behavior, which has an unavoidable neural basis

[darliegoddess]

"Ive come across in my research where teens identified as 'gay' & had SRS then found out later they were actually bi-sexual -some came to regret SRS"

Quote your sources because in my 51 years this is the first I've ever heard that line. It's about a 5 year process so there is lots of time to test the waters even if you are a teen , longer if you are poor. Again , their sexuality is irrelevant and any professional who would miss a flag like " transition for sexual reasons* is incompetent.

[darliegoddess]

"gay lesbian & bi youth already have enough to deal with due to atrocious bigotry in society & a very sad lack of education among the general public. "

Well actually their greatest threat is gays since many gays are often just as prejudice as straights against gays /bi's who are not straight looking. Like effeminate gays.

"SEXUAL ATTRACTION occurs IN THE BRAIN!!! ".

But it is not gender.

" is inextricably entwined with Reproductive Behavior"

Then why are 50% if transsexuals gay ?

[sehryn]

if 50% are gay that speaks clearly about something going on in the very complex relationship between brain & biochemicals / hormones that configure the embryonic brain...it occurs in TWO stages...first behavior then reproduction

naturally, all the research is not in yet, but Im keeping tabs on what is coming out of neuroscience & psychology

as to regretful SRS..it has happened in Britain that I know for sure. I dont have immediate access to refs but will follow it up & share

BTW I'm Pro SRS

[sehryn]

I cant agree that gays are the greater threat

not to disrespect your experience, but society makes the rules that make life comfy or hard, like getting a job, promotion, etc and those things really matter to a persons wellbeing

and btw most fundies are not professed gay yet they are positively lethal haters

I have gay friends and they can be total biatches it's true but then I dont observe them being as dangerously hostile to those outside the norm the way religious pple often are

[darliegoddess]

" most fundies are not professed gay yet they are positively lethal haters"

Ted Haggards really. Everything points to repressed latent homosexuality. They are just destroying the temptation.

"not to disrespect your experience, but society makes the rules that make life comfy"

Not at any point did this society make it easy or comfy  for me . I saved every dime I could, held off till I could not stand my own existence anymore and did it. I did it completely on my own with no help.

[sehryn]

"Not at any point did this society make it easy or comfy for me"

THATs EXACTLY what I said - its society that prescribes WHAT is NORMAL & sets up to REJECT anyone outside the norm

people outside the norm suffer because jobs etc tend to be closed to them, so society basically decides who is going to be comfy (get a good job, promotion, etc) & who is going to be outside struggling looking in

good parents always help, but not everyone has that luxury - espesh not if their kids are social rejects

[darliegoddess]

"need lots of support & education to help them make a decision they will NOT regret"

I'm confused where you are getting your statistics that say they regret it. Again, any professional that would pass someone through the system because " they want to have sex with boys " is incompetent. The HBSOC is for weeding out anyone transitioning on the basis of "sexual fantasy ".

[sehryn]

You're possibly not taking into consideration those who raise the money themselves & go overseas where less questions are asked

so maybe your Canadian system is totally foolproof with its screening & no kid will fall through a crack so there is nothing to worry about

I HAVE noticed there ARE people who made a mistake & it concerns me that it could happen again - whether in Canada or Thailand or elsewhere

not to discount TS people at all, Id like people to be, not defensive, but aware of it

[sehryn]

in my country, as sophisticated as we are, as good as our medical, educational, political systems are...people do fall through cracks

ime systems are not infallible

if you have an infallible system working for your citizens then that is great

but I dont trust any system absolutely & completely to always get it right

I feel more comfortable taking it further & providing info to the public - if some people dont need the education well & good - but imo that's no reason to not get info out there

[darliegoddess]

"You're possibly not taking into consideration those who raise the money themselves & go overseas where less questions are asked "

The standards for getting surgery are the same , letters and such. Oh and I raised ever dime my self . No government or insurance assistance. That would be trusting myself to uneducated bigots. They are not by an means infallible and in fact border on primitive . Information is never bad but, we have to free you all from associating sexual preference from gender.

[sehryn]

think I understand where you are coming from

My work in behavior change has taught me that people are more open & accepting of scientific explanations than they are of emotive reasoning - WHEN given info in a form they can comprehend with uneducated minds

ime explaining the neurological basis of sexuality & gender has a faster, less emotive learning response than time & emotion invested in trying to convince people they should not associate sexual pref & gender per se

I see why you persist tho

[sehryn]

so let's get 'em on all fronts!!!

I despise bigotry & violence of any kind

I do what I can to dispel, but sometimes I get plain peed off

re gays being the greater threat

I would have thought being beaten to a pulp & left hanging on a fence to die is up there with the most dangerous threats a person can face -simply because they dont fit the norm

Im wondering how gays are worse than that?

I imagine they might be cold, sarcastic, sneering, sniggering & rejecting but revoltingly violent??

[darliegoddess]

"would have thought being beaten to a pulp & left hanging on a fence to die is up there with the most dangerous threats a person can face -simply because they dont fit the norm"

Think of it this way , was it the Nazi's carting Jews away that were the problem or the majority of the population that let them ?

[darliegoddess]

" ...has taught me that people are more open & accepting of scientific explanations than they are of emotive reasoning "

Unfortunately it's a false reasoning that leads to theories like eugenics. I'm not sure why we prize the scientific so highly when medically we haven't even conquered the common cold. I trust my emotional instincts, they have saved my life.

Be "convinced" by the truth rather than presentation. People have no voice in my life because their opinion is irrelevant.

[darliegoddess]

"I have gay friends and they can be total biatches it's true but then I dont observe them being as dangerously hostile"

They wince at every drag queen , every limp wrist gay and transsexual ( lol , yet they claim to have absolutely nothing in common whatsoever ) . Make no mistake, they are by far the greater threat. They hate as deeply as any southern redneck . Not since Michael Baileys Unifying Theory of Stupidity has modern society has been so threatened by the uneducated.

[sehryn]

Its shocking that society rejects people-through no fault of their own

humans do this...they do it along lines of gender, race, ethnicity, religion, sexuality

its awful...but one of best things to do at this time is get info out there

PEOPLE are NOT TRANSSEXUAL by CHOICE

it is because their BRAIN is CONFIGURED that way

Pple are NOT HOMOSEXUAL by CHOICE

its because their BRAIN is CONFIGURED that way

ALL EMBRYOs...EVERY SINGLE ONE, ie, ALL PEOPLE start life with a FEMALE BRAIN at conception

[darliegoddess]

"PEOPLE are NOT TRANSSEXUAL by CHOICE"

You would have to be insane to *choose* the hell of transition so I must agree.

[sehryn]

"You would have to be insane to *choose* the hell of transition so I must agree."

that is what I have always thought too

when I first began to think about it I came to the conclusion WHY would anyone want to be so vehemently rejected & abused by society???? highly unlikely

I had gay friends from a young age & realised early that that is who they were & that they had NO CHOICE in the matter

but bible bashers tend to TEACH it is a Choice & a SIN!!!

they need serious re-educating

[darliegoddess]

"about it I came to the conclusion WHY would anyone want to be so vehemently rejected & abused by society???? highly unlikely"

No one has a choice. Not you not me , not anyone. Are there crazy transsexuals , of course but it's up to the medical profession to weed them out of the transition system and deal with those issues BEFORE they proceed. It's fairly easy and even the uneducated could do it. =)

[Puregrl05]

gross

[alejandrox3]

your gross. id love to be with a girl like her. i bet your girlfriend isnt half as pretty. nevermind that your girlfriend is plastic and inflateabe

[Puregrl05]

Just don't know why people would want sex changes, especially men....Being a woman is so hard and they are becomming women in cheap and unfair ways, I support the gay community, i'm not a hater but....why can't they just be a proud Gay Human being

[alejandrox3]

because they...we... are not gay. gay is an attraction to the same sex, which has NOTHING to do with the gender one feels they are.

gender identity (and i hate the term "disorder") is basically that we have a female brain and are trapped in a male body. thusly we will do everything we can to fix the situation.

it has NOTHING to do with gay or straight, i myself a a transgender lesbian.

[Puregrl05]

Not to enforce religion because i'm not a bible thumper myself but, If you were meant to be the gender you claim you should have been born then you would have been born that gender, everytime it's that time of the month I hate being a woman, but would I get surgery to change that? Hell no us Women basically hold the reproduction for new lives into the world and having that power is Awsome in itself.

[alejandrox3]

the sum of a woman's life is not just reproduction. its nice but THAT is not what soley constitutes a woman, any more than having a penis makes you a man.

its about your mind, my psychological makeup is female. its not "cheap" to surgically correct a mistake of birth. and as far as your period. males have a cycle too monthly, they just dont ovulate. google it.

and as far as the religious thing, honestly whatever you believe in....whatever, but keep god out of state policy please.

[Puregrl05]

did you for real read what you wrote before u submitted it? Having a penis or a vagina, especially being Born with a penis or a vagina IS soley what makes a person a male or a female...lol and I said All Religion aside, I didn't mention anything about God. There is no such thing as right or wrong bodies, There are times where i wish I was a boy because I hate my monthy visitor and it doesn't take much to groom yourself but I wouldn't trade anything in the world from being a Girl.

[sehryn]

I think youll find eventually when all the research is in that in fact gay, lesbian, bisexuality, transgender are indeed related in some way

basically the idea is that all brains are female at conception - if the mother produces right balance of androgens at the right time then Xy chromosome brains will turn male & XX will stay female

but what happens is that androgens are often disordered - so gender then is a continuous variable rather than a dichotomous one

(also disorders in say XXy vary)

[kabardinka1]

Having the CAMH be the gatekeeper of this process means the policy is flawed. CAMH (formerly the Clark Center) is a seriously messed up institution run by pseudo scientists with some very transphobic attitudes. Ontario needs to allow a wider range of professionals be involved in this process.

[LEXUSRXBOY]

hey is there some where thati can get more infromation of fundinng process

[juliewashington]

oh well.. It's very interesting video but if u feel you want to get SRS,work hard, safe money then do SRS instead of waiting for help by goverment fund to get it done. Why don't those 200K/yrs use it for giving them more education as a loan instead of helping them to get SRS. Tell them stop regreting what god gave as you were born in wrong body and blamming goverment for that...You were born that way dont regret fix it ur self and show it to the world u can do it without help from others.

[sehryn]

I agree a little...coz its empowering for people to be able to make things happen in their own lives, but

its possible TS is partly the result of pollution & stress etc. Its known for sure that its NOT a person's Fault so NO BLAME shld be laid

Its a dreadful hand to be dealt & its children that have the scary experience of realising they are, in their words, "IN THE WRONG BODY"

how do you suppose they feel about that???

Society should help, & Why NOT? We help other people with medical issues

[darliegoddess]

"its possible TS is partly the result of pollution & stress etc. Its known for sure that its NOT a person's Fault so NO BLAME shld be laid"

It could also be natures way of slowing population growth.

"I think youll find eventually when all the research is in that in fact gay, lesbian, bisexuality, transgender are indeed related in some way"

Well politically there is only one basis, equality.

[xTheAshleyMartinx]

lol's. I love the close-up of the angel lamp too (???)

[sadamitsu]

i think its about time canada has paid more attention to transexuals and their needs. monsterstud what you said is not funny, you obviously know little or nothing about gender identity and the dysphoria transexuals have to deal with every day.

the issue is who will this be available to, and what services can they provide

[intactivist1]

"Despite her appearance she was born a man."

This is a classic line often used in reporting on transsexuals but it is rediculous, to the ear and to the mind. She was born a male infant perhaps but she was not born a man.

[xTheAshleyMartinx]

that red jacket is fucking great

[RLhockey203]

@intactivist1 nah shes a dude

[Pyro6Burning6Gundam6]

@intactivist1 exactly, The mind and body cannot always exist in harmony and if left alone, the mind will shatter, go insane, and destroy the body. Her mind may have been feminine to begin with but was born into a man's body.

[mediajunkie29]

It's sad that when it comes to money, people tend to tighten up and get deffensive even during a situation as sensitive as this one. WoW

[Monsterstud]

I'm a skinny person born in a fat mans body, anyone wanna pay to change that?