Thank you Dr. Anne Bellows

Recently retired Regina psychiatrist Anne Bellows was instrumental in my beginning to seriously address my being transgendered and also suffering from gender dysphoria.

Being transgendered is a naturally occurring phenomenom. Gender dysphoria is when a person experiences distress in how they experience themselves as differing from their biological sex. It is that distress which can lead to persons being more prone to depression, social isolation, overeating or some other addictive coping mechanism, and in tragic instances, suicide.

Self acceptance as being transgendered is a goal worth working towards in spite of the shame many grow up feeling due to society’s tendency to reject nonconformity.

The dysphoria, while seen as a medical disorder, does not imply that people themselves are disordered, no more than a thyroid disorder implies that the sufferer is as a person disordered.

The transgendered don’t need people feeling sorry for them, nor patronizing judgment or avoidance.

At present no psychiatrists are focusing on treating persons suffering with gender identity Issues. Who is responsible for education for psychiatrists, GPS, counsellors, therapists, and other service providers regarding those important decisions involving persons requiring trans-related medical services?

Any specialists or GPS working in trans medicine are providing a needed safety net of reliable care to the extent that they can.

I was fortunate that a call to the local crisis line a few years back led me to the suggestion to try and see Dr. Bellows.

Dr. Bellows in her short time serving in psychiatry in Regina has left an incredible impression upon me personally, and I am sure on others.

May things continue to improve for the many, rather than a few.

Karenanne Joy Krofchek, Regina