When a child sufffers from anorexia or body dysphoria, do we expect counselors to be forced to affirm their affliction?  Do we expect counselors to give them a gym membership and encourage them to lose more weight?  A counselor is not supposed to simply enable their patient to continue in their distress.  They are meant to help the patient to heal.

Gender Identity disorder and gender dysphoria are a form of mental illness.  The idea that a boy can look in the mirror and see a girl is simply not normal, and cannot ever be considered normal.  Gender affirmative treatment inevitable leads to hormone therapy and mutilating surgery, which then leads to suicide attempts for over 50% of cases.  How can leading your patient towards a life that leads to an incredibly high rate of suicide ever be considered safer than trying to help them cope with their confusion and eventually reconcile and accept the biological truth of their existence?

Counselors need the freedom to be able to speak with their patients without fear of persecution.  Turn down this politically motivated guidance document and protect counselors from extremists looking to silence any dissenting points of view.