Developmente of Sexuality and Gender Identity - 642 Words

Most children and youth find that the development of sexuality and gender identity is an extremely challenging process. For intersex youth, this issue is even more complex. On top of the emotional, psychological, social and physical challenges of puberty, intersex children are often at the mercy of their physicians to provide thorough, honest information and to guide their decisions. Traditionally, doctors have treated intersex children with a â€Å"concealment-centered† approach—one that devalues the significance of this medical condition sometimes to the point of deceiving their patients. Socially, many people have a hard time being told that sex is not black and white. Young people need to be able to discuss these issues with an educated support network. As the physician, I would use a patient-centered approach, discuss all options, including psychological counseling and other non-surgical treatments or ways of coping. Surgery makes everyone involved more comfortable temporarily but is irreversible. When a baby is born with a disfigured yet mostly functional body part, we do not hastily replace it with a prosthetic that possibly works. Of all human anatomy, our reproductive organs play a major role in our mental state. A better preliminary step would involve psychological therapy. Counseling makes everyone more comfortable and is reversible. â€Å"Do no harm† can elicit various actions from physicians depending on the circumstance. Some think it means protection against