Gender- Ask a Pro Live with Kai and Olivia July 25th 2019

Kai's top tips for questioning your gender! 

1. Don’t be afraid to experiment, experiment with labels, or no labels, until you find something that fits for you. 
2. Put yourself around supporting people who accept you for who you are no matter what 
3. Don’t feel pressured to come out until you’re ready and feel safe.

@KaiRoe @WheresMySquishy love those!! So so important. You hear so often about people feeling so pressured to figure out their identity straight away and made to feel obligated to share it immediately, which is so wrong! It's your life, your journey, and your truth: not theirs

@Hozzles Little known secret, im more of a ferret person!

@KaiRoe so glad that there was an online space that helped you put a name to how you felt! It sounds like a really powerful moment finding that there are people who feel the same as you and finding out there's such a spectrum!

@Olivia_QLDchildrensHospital  it's so scary hearing about such a complete lack of support and healthcare for the trans community, even as recently as 15 years ago. Sometimes it feels like we've come a long way, but then again there's so far to go as well.. Would be interesting to compare the services available now as compared to the early 2000s. 

@KaiRoe I only found out how to describe my gender because of tumblr as well.

I love the gif!!

@ecla34 @Olivia_QLDchildrensHospital I think that one of my local hospitals actually has a gender center type thing, but they only really help with physical transition from what I know.

I haven't been told that someone couldn't treat me, but I get misgendered all the time from my doctors; once as part of a report.

Hi @Tiny_leaf I am so sorry to hear you are often being misgendered by your doctors, that must be so tough to experience What I'm hearing is that the gender centre in your area focuses on physical transition, are there are supports you would be interested in too? If so, what would you like to see from gender centres?

We are happy to see if we can point you in the direction of some more support too

@KaiRoe your third tip "Don’t feel pressured to come out until you’re ready and feel safe" has been something that has come up in a few recent forums conversations So important!

@Tiny_leaf I'm so sorry you get misgendered by doctors! I can relate. some advice, well something I do, if you feel safe enough to do so, just assert your name and pronouns, make sure they know what they are and correct them if they don't use them!

@Tiny_leaf Im sorry you get misgendered by health professionals. If you have a friendly GP or school nurse/counsellor you could ask them about getting a referral to your local service to check them out. It is totally ok to directly ask your health professional to use your pronouns and mark their records with this

@Olivia_QLDchildrensHospital that's actually after I've asked them to use my pronouns...

Some doctors can't get their head around "they" as a pronoun, and seem to see me as "basically a girl". The NDIS is also not great with this.

I might look into a referral at some point, though I'm getting closer to 18 now...

@ecla34  Yes it was really hard back then, eventually i found a half day a month Children's gender service that they could go to but the waiting time was 1 year! So glad we have small team now in Queensland to offer psychological support and medical treatments

the work that Olivia @Olivia_QLDchildrensHospital is doing is so inspiring! wow!

@KaiRoe  Y'all deserve it 

I agree with you @ecla34. It disappointments me when I hear about someone not being able to get the support or help they need. We can do a lot better. I'm glad that there are people like @Olivia_QLDchildrensHospital who are helping to make services more accessible.

@Olivia_QLDchildrensHospital I am so moved by your drive to make a difference! We need more service providers like you who are passionate to make a difference and motivated to support those in our community who can fall through the gaps of traditional mental health services. Such an inspiring journey!

I really hope you achieve your goals @KaiRoe! I think you'll be a great role model for other young people.

@KaiRoe both organisations sounds like they'd be really cool to work for, with all the amazing work that they do 🙂

It's so nice to meet fellow animal lovers @Olivia_QLDchildrensHospital and @KaiRoe! I wish I had a pet right now.

Kai (they/them) here, your local gender nerd, I’m trans Non-Binary and ready to answer your questions! Three fun things about me? WELL!

1. I’m an artist
2. I’m currently wearing odd socks, foxes and cacti 
3. My cat is hanging out with me tonight, meowing at my music choices

Hi @KaiRoe and @Olivia_QLDchildrensHospital ! It's really nice to meet you! 😄 
Can't wait for the chat to start!

@Ladybug @Hozzles and @recharging_introvert feel free to join in if you're still online in the next while! 🙂

Hi @KaiRoe + @Olivia_QLDchildrensHospital! This is so exciting!