We're back! After a short hiatus, we're relaunching with a special reunion episode featuring our very first guest, Luke S. In this heartfelt conversation, we explore how Luke's gender journey has evolved since we last spoke, the transition from high school to college, as well as his insights on navigating the world as a young transgender person in today's America.

In This Episode:

• 00:00 Introduction to Gender Wellness and Special Guest
• 01:52 Luke's Journey: From High School to College
• 03:33 Family Dynamics and Support
• 05:19 The Importance of Gender Affirming Care
• 07:25 Medical Transitioning as A Young Person
• 09:28 Letting Your Authentic Self Shine
• 11:01 Navigating Therapy and Support Systems
• 13:35 Advice for Trans Teens in Today's Climate
• 17:07 Reflection and Closing Thoughts

Key Topics:

• Moving from high school to college as a transgender student
• Nuturing family support systems and relationships
• Accessing and benefiting from gender-affirming care
• Finding and utilizing appropriate mental health resources
• Practical advice for transgender teens navigating today's political and social climate
• Building resilience and community in challenging times

Resources Mentioned:

• Gender Wellness of Los Angeles - Therapy and gender affirming services: 1-818-855-1105
• Trevor Project Crisis Support: 1-866-488-7386
• Trans Lifeline: 877-565-8860
• PFLAG - Support for families and allies

Connect With Us!

• Website: https://genwell.org/
• Instagram: @genderwellnessla
• Tiktok: @genderwellnessla
• Email: frontdesk@genwell.org

About Our Hosts: Casey Weitzman, LMFT (she/her) and Grace O'Connor, LMFT (she/her), are licensed marriage and family therapists specializing in gender identity at Gender Wellness of Los Angeles.

Listen and Subscribe: Find "Over the Binary: Conversations About Gender" on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Audacy.

Over the Binary is a podcast dedicated to providing resources, testimonies, and answers related to gender for LGBTQIA+ individuals and allies. Our conversations aim to inform, support, and inspire as we work together toward a more inclusive world for people of all gender identities.

Dr. Marci Bowers began working with the trans community in the mid-1990’s, prior to her transition. Flash forward to today, she is a well-known pioneer in the field of gender-affirming surgery, the first transgender woman to perform such surgeries. 

In addition to her work as a physician/surgeon, Marci is the current President of WPATH, the first transgender woman to hold the post, and also serves on the Board of Directors for The Trevor Project. Previously, she has served on the Boards of GLAAD and the Transgender Law Center. Over the years, Dr. Bowers has been called upon — or been the subject of — numerous documentaries, interviews, news reports, and articles.

Marci and podcast co-host Casey Weitzman, the President and Founder of Gender Wellness of Los Angeles, have been friends and colleagues for over 10 years. All (above) things considered, it’s no wonder that OTB, Episode 9 took lots of twists and turns. Even after editing, it runs a little longer than expected, so we’ve outlined the episode to help you navigate the range of topics discussed.

CHAPTER 1 (6:21)
Trans-Surgical History Gives Way to Progress
Marci’s time in Trinidad, Colorado — dubbed the “sex change capital of the world” — which began in 2003, before her move to the West Coast which led to further development of gender-affirming surgery programs.
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CHAPTER 2 (16:37)
The Science of WPATH
As President, Marci talks is emphatic that WPATH “is as science-based as any organization that I've ever been a part of.”
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CHAPTER 3 (20:40)
Informed by DSM & Informed Consent
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) is a formal classification of mental health disorders, featuring symptoms, diagnostic criteria, culture and gender-related features, and other important diagnostic information. Recent updates to the DSM, regarding care for gender-diverse folks, are discussed as Marci resoundingly states that GAS patients need to “do your research.” 
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CHAPTER 4 (28:17)
The Plight of Gender-Diverse Youth
Questions about the writings of Abigail Shrier direct the conversation towards thoughts about appropriate care for trans youth, the fear and doubt of parents, puberty blockers, and more.
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CHAPTER 5 (40:43)
The Importance of Mental Health
A transition involves much more than just physical transformation, and mental health guidance along the way is paramount to one’s journey.
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CHAPTER 6 (46:51)
A Vagina Dialogue: Vaginoplasty

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Presented by Gender Wellness of Los Angeles, OTB is a podcast hosted by Casey Weitzman, MA, LMFT and Grace O’Connor, MA, LMFT. Casey and Grace are sometimes be joined by a variety of guests to discuss topics designed that expand the collective understanding — and raise awareness — of issues important to transgender, gender diverse, and gender nonbinary people. OTB may also be streamed from popular podcast platforms like Audible and Apple Podcasts.

For reasons not understood, gender-diverse people are three to six times as likely to be autistic as cisgender people. In Episode 8, Casey and Grace welcome special guest, Dr. Laurie Stephens, to discuss the connection of autism diagnoses among the gender-diverse population. Dr. Stephens is a developmental psychologist who has been working with children, teens, and young adults on the autism spectrum for over 25 years. She currently serves as The Help Group’s Senior Director of Autism and LGBTQ+ Programs.

Why this episode is relevant, especially for parents of transgender and non-binary children and for our fellow mental health clinicians

According to Spectrum, a prominent publisher of news and analysis about autism research, “People who do not identify with the sex they were assigned at birth are three to six times as likely to be autistic as cisgender people are, according to the largest study yet to examine the connection. Gender-diverse people are also more likely to report autism traits and to suspect they have undiagnosed autism.” NOTE: Researchers often use “gender diverse” as an umbrella term to describe people whose gender identities — such as transgender, non-binary or gender-queer — differ from the sex they were assigned at birth. Spectrum also reports “Nearly 70 percent of autistic gender-diverse adolescents say they need medical gender-related care, according to a small 2018 study, and 32 percent say their gender identity has been questioned because of their autism diagnosis.” As you watch/listen to Episode 8, you’ll discover why Dr. Stephens says — addressing fellow mental health clinicians: “If you work with the autistic population, you really need to be familiar with the gender diverse population. And if you work in the gender diverse world, you need to understand autism.”

More about Dr. Laurie Stephens

Prior to her current position with The Help Group, Dr. Stephens served as the Director of Clinical Services for Education Spectrum for 12 years. She provided diagnostic and psycho-educational evaluations, individual and family therapy, social skills training, educational consultation and professional, academic and parent training. While working with her clients and their families, Dr. Stephens became extremely interested in the overlap between transgender, non-binary and gender-queer identifications among folks on the spectrum, as many of her clients began to reveal their authentic selves to her. Dr. Stephens’ passion led her to her current role overseeing all of Kaleidoscope’s programming and events. She has been instrumental in establishing a specialized diagnostic clinic for LGBTQ+ children, teens, and young adults who suspect they have an autism spectrum disorder.

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Presented by Gender Wellness of Los Angeles ( https://genwell.org ), OTB is a podcast hosted by Casey Weitzman, MA, LMFT and Grace O’Connor, MA, LMFT. Casey and Grace are sometimes be joined by a variety of guests to discuss topics designed that expand the collective understanding — and raise awareness — of issues important to transgender, gender diverse, and gender nonbinary people. OTB may also be streamed from popular podcast platforms like Audible and Apple Podcasts.

+++ Is there a topic that you’d like OTB to consider for an upcoming episode? Reach out to us and let us know: https://genwell.org/contact/

In most cases, the mental health care that Gender Wellness of Los Angeles provides to gender expansive individuals and their families is sufficient in addressing behavioral health concerns such as anxiety, depression, and social difficulties that often accompany the trans / non-binary person’s journey at a given point in time. However, there are cases when the severity of emotions — and the resulting behaviors — are so intense that more care is needed. Suicidality and incidents of self-harm, for example, are all too common within the transgender and non-binary population — among adolescents and adults.

In Episode 7 of Over the Binary (OTB), hosts Casey Weitzman, MA, LMFT and Grace O’Connor, MA, LMFT welcome Dr. Nicole Siegfried, the Chief Clinical Officer for Lightfully Behavioral Health. Lightfully provides a process-based therapy via residential treatment, partial hospitalization programs, intensive outpatient program, and virtual services — when more care is needed. Nearly one-third of Lightfully's clients identify as LGBTQ.