Do not minimize the social pressure or bullying your child may be facing. Stand up for your child when they are mistreated. Even if there are disagreements, they will need your support and validation to develop into healthy teens and adults. Try to understand what they are feeling and experiencing. Understand that although gender identity is not able to be changed, it often is revealed over time as people discover more about themselves.Īccept and love your child as they are. When your child discloses their identity to you, respond in an affirming, supportive way. They may also have many questions along their child's journey. Just as gender diverse children do best when their feelings are explored and validated, some parents may need their own emotional supports. One model suggests the process resembles the stages of grief: shock, denial, anger, bargaining, and acceptance. However, there is evidence that family members go through their own process of becoming more comfortable and understanding of a child's gender identity, thoughts, and feelings. Some kids might expect immediate acceptance and understanding. It is critically important that children feel loved and accepted for who they are.ĭisclosing their gender diverse identity,
Research suggests that gender is something we are born with it can't be changed by any interventions.
Transgender: Usually used when gender diverse traits remain persistent, consistent, and insistent over time.Īccepting your child's gender-diverse identity Like gender identity, an individual's physical and emotional attraction to a member of the same or the opposite sex cannot be changed and is very difficult to predict early in childhood. A person who is transgender still identifies as straight, gay, bisexual or something else. Sexual orientation: One's sexual identity as it relates to who someone falls in love with or is attracted to. Self-recognition of gender identity develops over time, much the same way a child's physical body does. This may be male, female, somewhere in between, a combination of both or neither. Gender identity: One's internal sense of who one is, based on an interaction of biological traits, developmental influences, and environmental conditions. Gender diverse: An umbrella term to describe an ever-evolving array of labels people may apply when their gender identity, expression, or even perception does not conform to the norms and stereotypes others expect. It is natural for parents to ask if it is "just a phase." But, there is no easy answer. They may feel like they are somewhere in between or have no gender. Some children, as the American Academy of PediatricsĮxplains, do not identify with either gender. This article is also available in other languages.