EP 12: The Many Paths of Medical Intervention with Dr. Kara Connelly

Camp Wild Heart

Hormone therapy, testosterone, estrogen. I've seen these words throw so much tension and chaos into families.

In our first medical episode, we introduced endocrinology and talked mostly about puberty, suppression medication or “the pause button.” Today, we're leveling up and talking about hormone replacement therapy or HRT.

So often, a child is begging for HRT, and the parents are giving the full-on deer in the headlights look.

Which makes sense, a lot of the time the child has been longing for hormones long before they ever came out. And teens, being so good at timing, tend to drop this request on their parents who are still wrapping their heads around what transgender even means.

What I’ve found is that because there's so much misinformation about gender and transition, that it is really easy to get lost in the BS. I've also found that most parents’ fears ease a bit after they learn more about what hormones do and don't do.

So to answer some of the most foundational questions parents regularly ask about hormone therapy, I've wrangled the help of Dr. Kara Connelly.

Dr. Connelly provides care for patients with a wide variety of endocrinology disorders. She is also the medical director for the Doernbecher Gender Clinic, which provides comprehensive medical care for transgender and gender diverse children and adolescents, under the umbrella of the Oregon Health and Science University Transgender Health Program.

She's involved in local and national research and advocacy efforts and is passionate about reducing barriers to care for gender diverse youth.

Check out the full episode to hear about:

• Why making an appointment with an endocrinologist is not a commitment to any one course of action
• The ways hormone therapies affect teenage bodies (changes are much slower than you think)
• The potential impacts of HRT on fertility, and what resources might be available to teens and families navigating those questions
• How supporting your teen in getting access to affirming care gives them a stronger foundation to move into adulthood

Find out more about Dr. Kara Connelly:

• Doernbecher Gender Clinic

Find out more about Mackenzie Dunham:

• wildheartsociety.org
• Wild Heart Society on Facebook
• Wild Heart Society on Instagram

Resources:

• Camp Wild Heart EP 11: Navigating the Rapids of Puberty Suppression with Dr. Karin Selva