I don't know, Molly. I can't help wondering if this is one of those situations where we won't find out until it's too late.
We know that the number of transitioners is growing, but we don't know why that is. There is a lot of talk about gender dysphoria, it's all a bit vague. All the same, we do know that according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, gender dysphoria prevalence accounts for 0.005–0.014% of the population for biological males and 0.002–0.003% for biological females. In both Japan and Poland, the prevalence of gender dysphoria is higher in biological females. (source here).
It is estimated by the government that there are somewhere between 200,000 and 500, 000 transpeople in the UK. (Source here), which is a tiny percentage of a population of 67million or so.
That so many legal changes and societal shifts are proposed to cater for such a small number of people, makes little sense to me. There has to be a reason why Building Services departments are being asked to include 'gender neutral' toilets to cater for so few people, why retail and sports facilities managers are expected to make decisions about women's privacy in changing rooms, and why teachers are being trained to deal with a condition (gender dysphoria) that affects so few children, when statistically they are far more likely to come across children with all manner of other conditions, whether physical, mental or psychological. I don't know what it is though, or why there are operations and hormones given on the NHS, particularly when all other areas are suffering from cutbacks.
I wonder when we'll find out what is behind all of this, but I get the feeling that it won't be long, as the tide does seem to be turning.
