I am seeing a disturbing trend of pushing childhood transgenderism.  Perhaps this is the same information being recycled by the news, or it could be legitimately more and more prevalent.  Regardless, we must push back against it.

I am not talking about when a four-year-old boy puts on his older sister's princess dress and runs through the house.  This type of incident is often benign and often outgrown.  I am referring to parents who push this abusive ideology.  A simple Google search will bring up many articles where parents have taken their prepubescent children to a doctor, who, for reasons unknown, political or otherwise, prescribes hormone treatment to begin a "transition."

No matter what the doctor prescribes the child, there will be only superficial changes.  No lab-made hormone will truly change the chromosomal makeup within the body of that child.  The mind and body are two different things.  The mind may think it is the opposite sex, but the body is the reality.  One cannot change reality at its core.

The treatment prior to puberty is highly disruptive.  The body will begin to change due to the new hormones.  After the body starts to change, it will begin to attempt to change as nature intended through puberty.  At this point, we will have a gender-dysphoric child such as Patrick Mitchell.

Mitchell was a boy who, at the age of ten, wanted to become a girl.  He begged his mother to let it happen.  Instead of acting like a parent, she wanted to be a friend.  He was taken to a doctor who subscribed to this ideology and gave him estrogen.  As expected, Mitchell began to grow breasts.  After a couple of years of treatment, puberty began, and Mitchell decided that he actually was ok with being a male.  He's stopped taking the hormones, but now he must undergo surgery to remove the breast tissue.

Now a portion of Mitchell's body will be mutilated for the rest of his life.  And for what?

By subscribing to this ideology, parents are placing their children not only in physical danger, but in psychological danger as well.  Forty-one percent of transgender individuals attempt suicide, compared to 4.6% of the general public.  But those who advocate for it will tell you that making the "transition" is the key to happiness for the one looking to switch.

We must push back for the sake of the children.  This issue isn't about politics or political parties, even though the Democrats make it seem that way.  This is about educating every child to the effect that his specific sex has been given to him early in development, and there is a reason for it.  That is the reality.  Using hormones in an attempt to change reality is extremely dangerous.

The DSM-V says 88% of girls and 98% of boys who are "gender-confused" grow out of these thoughts after puberty.  If an adult says he wants to go through the process, he will have to answer for his own actions.  But putting a child's physical and mental health at stake is child abuse.

The pushback must begin with parents.  They must educate themselves on the dangers to their child and then pass that information to their child.  If the child does not want to listen to his parents, a professional should be sought.

Second, doctors must understand the dangers of prescribing hormones like this to children.  They must be made aware of the clash that will come with puberty and foreign hormone treatment.  There should also be a requirement for medical doctors to learn about the psychological implications as well.

Third, the American Medical Association needs to take a stance in objectivity for the sake of children, not the sake of political correctness.

When we have children, we are given a great responsibility.  Let's take that seriously.