Austin Mitchell

You know, it's funny. I was trying to find some of my old notes, and I couldn't find anything other than, like, my personal journal, where I unfortunately did not write a whole lot about what I was doing work-wise. It was more just, like, my life at that time and being over in Europe by myself for a while. Yeah.

You know, it's funny. I was trying to find some of my old notes, and I couldn't find anything other than, like, my personal journal, where I unfortunately did not write a whole lot about what I was doing work-wise. It was more just, like, my life at that time and being over in Europe by myself for a while. Yeah.

But it was reminding me that, as I read that, that I had no clue how huge this was going to be. Absolutely no clue.

But it was reminding me that, as I read that, that I had no clue how huge this was going to be. Absolutely no clue.

It was pretty rare that I said no. I mean, at the beginning, when the cases were straightforward, just the fact that the young person was surviving in the world as a trans person when everything was going against them, but yet They couldn't live any other way. Like, their dysphoria was so severe that once we treated them medically, their mental health did improve drastically.

It was pretty rare that I said no. I mean, at the beginning, when the cases were straightforward, just the fact that the young person was surviving in the world as a trans person when everything was going against them, but yet They couldn't live any other way. Like, their dysphoria was so severe that once we treated them medically, their mental health did improve drastically.

And I remember giving talks about how many kids were able to stop taking their psych meds after they started transitioning because it really— You know, it was clearly tied to that. So when I saw how incredibly helpful it was to so many of these kids, it really confirmed for me that it was the right intervention.

And I remember giving talks about how many kids were able to stop taking their psych meds after they started transitioning because it really— You know, it was clearly tied to that. So when I saw how incredibly helpful it was to so many of these kids, it really confirmed for me that it was the right intervention.

And then it just kept growing.

And then it just kept growing.

There was just a growing need to train psychologists and other mental health providers on the assessment especially, but meant just the therapy too.

There was just a growing need to train psychologists and other mental health providers on the assessment especially, but meant just the therapy too.

I felt like I was starting to make a dent in getting my field up to speed.

I felt like I was starting to make a dent in getting my field up to speed.

And it was just filling up like crazy.

And it was just filling up like crazy.

I think, you know, in terms of the time frame, you know, people often ask, well, why did the numbers increase at that point? And the most common response you get from a lot of people is, well, it was talked about more, and so the acceptance, right, and so people felt more comfortable coming out.

I think, you know, in terms of the time frame, you know, people often ask, well, why did the numbers increase at that point? And the most common response you get from a lot of people is, well, it was talked about more, and so the acceptance, right, and so people felt more comfortable coming out.

Which I think absolutely explains part of it, but... There is no way that explains all of it. Absolutely no way from my perspective that that explains all of it. I think the internet is a huge piece of it because when I started this work, none of these kids were, there was no social media.

Which I think absolutely explains part of it, but... There is no way that explains all of it. Absolutely no way from my perspective that that explains all of it. I think the internet is a huge piece of it because when I started this work, none of these kids were, there was no social media.