The International Journal of Transgenderism has published evidence that many patients regret their sex-reassignment surgery when they discover that the surgery failed to solve their real problems. Some subjects confessed that they had second thoughts about having the surgery. However, because they feared that they might never get another chance at the surgery, they kept those second thoughts to themselves (Kuiper, & Cohen-Kettenis 1998).
My own father believed that becoming a woman would make his life more satisfying and fulfilling. He, like so many others, then discovered that fulfilling his fantasy did not give him the inner peace he’d sought after that was because his problem was emotional, not physical (Shick, 2008).
A 23-year-old man called me saying he was calling for a friend. It took only seconds to determine that he was really calling for himself. He had the sex-reassignment surgery six months earlier. He felt desperate because he recognized that there was no going back. He asked, “How can my friend forgive himself for what he has done?”
Sexual reassignment surgery is not simple, but highly invasive. According to caring professionals:
Efforts should be directed toward the development of effective therapy for adolescents and adults. The fact that such therapy is not described extensively in the literature and therefore is not widely available, and that these patients resist therapeutic interventions, does not justify giving in to the demand for surgical mutilation (Fitzgibbons, Sutton, & O’ Leary, 2009, p. 125).
A mom and dad were shocked to learn that their son was living a homosexual lifestyle and was transitioning to a female. They were a close family, and their son had never given them any grief. Before long, their son started to take illegal hormones and became further depressed as he started to transition to a woman. He felt as if he was in between the male and female world, and he had no peace. About a year and a half later he committed suicide, stating he could not live in that confused state of mind any longer.
Parents with sucidal children are often desperate for the medical field to help them. And some men with G.I.D. or gender dysphoria do seek counseling, support, and other tools that will help them learn the causes that have stirred up their confusion. They want to accept and embrace their masculinity rather then flee from it. Such choices are brave and right, but they are not easy.
There is no quick fix for such a difficult issue.
Meet Luke, who suffers from severe anxiety, depression, and compulsive behaviors. Luke is confused about his male identity and feels inadequate as a man. His cross-dressing become unmanageable. He quietly admits that he feels ‘good’ when cross-dressing, but hates himself afterwards. Luke has grown tired and worn from the bondage of his addictive behaviors. He is now seeing a therapist on a regular basis. Some visits with his therapist are challenging due to the “stuff’ that he has to face. As tough as it is sometimes, he is experiencing some freedom as he comes to understand his root issues. He is determined to move forward towards being free.
Pray for Luke, and all the others caught up in the lies of world we live in.