Summary

Elie Vandenbussche surveyed 237 people from online detransition communities about why they stopped transitioning and what help they needed. Most were young women, many with depression, anxiety or other diagnoses, and about a third had transitioned only socially. 70% came to see their gender distress as linked to other issues, and half said transition had not helped. People needed help with other mental health problems, regret and inner shame about being gay, medical help to stop hormones, and contact with other detransitioners. Only 18% felt properly supported, and many described dismissive clinicians and rejection by LGBT+ communities. It is useful evidence about online detransition spaces, but the volunteers were mostly female and their answers couldn't be checked, so they don't represent all detransitioners. A 2026 correction clarified who was included and dropped one comparison.

Key findings

• 디트랜지셔너 237명이 참여했습니다. 92%가 여성, 평균 연령 25세, 51%가 미국 출신이었습니다. 65%는 사회적으로 그리고 의학적으로 전환했고 31%는 사회적으로만 전환했습니다.
• 중단의 가장 흔한 이유는 성별 고통이 다른 문제와 관련이 있음을 깨달은 것(70%), 건강 걱정(62%), 전환이 고통에 도움이 되지 않은 것(50%), 대처할 다른 방법을 찾은 것(45%)이었습니다. 43%는 정치적 견해의 변화를 언급했습니다.
• 다른 건강 문제가 흔했습니다. 54%가 진단받은 상태를 세 가지 이상 보고했고, 가장 흔한 것은 우울(70%), 불안(63%), PTSD(외상 후 스트레스 장애, 33%)였습니다.
• 45%는 치료가 건강에 미치는 영향에 대해 사전에 제대로 듣지 못했다고 느꼈습니다. 제대로 안내받았다고 느낀 사람은 18%뿐이었습니다.
• 가장 흔한 필요는 성별 고통과 관련된 정신 건강 문제에 대한 도움과 의학적 전환 이외의 선택지(각 65%), 후회에 대처하는 것(60%)이었습니다. 87%는 다른 디트랜지셔너의 이야기를 듣고 싶어 했습니다.
• 디트랜지션하는 동안 충분한 지원을 받았다고 느낀 사람은 18%뿐이었습니다(51%는 아니라고, 31%는 확신하지 못한다고 답함). 온라인 그룹, 친구, 가족이 주된 도움의 원천이었고, LGBT+ 또는 트랜스 단체에서 도움을 받은 사람은 13%뿐이었습니다.

Abstract

The aim of this study is to analyze the specific needs of detransitioners from online detrans communities and discover to what extent they are being met. For this purpose, a cross-sectional online survey was conducted and gathered a sample of 237 male and female detransitioners. The results showed important psychological needs in relation to gender dysphoria, comorbid conditions, feelings of regret and internalized homophobic and sexist prejudices. It was also found that many detransitioners need medical support notably in relation to stopping/changing hormone therapy, surgery/treatment complications and reversal interventions. Additionally, the results indicated the need for hearing about other detransitioners' experiences and meeting each other. A major lack of support was reported by the respondents overall, with a lot of negative experiences coming from medical and mental health systems and from the LGBT+ community. The study highlights the importance of increasing awareness and support given to detransitioners.

Conclusion

The aim of the present research was to examine detransitioners' needs and support. The four categories of needs (psychological, medical, legal and social) that were created for sake of clarity in the survey were a simplification of the real complexity of the experiences made by detransitioners and they have their limitations. Nonetheless, these categories enabled the current study to uncover the fact that most detransitioners could benefit from some form of counseling and in particular when it comes to psychological support on matters such as gender dysphoria, comorbid conditions, feelings of regret, social/physical changes and internalized homophobic or sexist prejudices. Medical support was also found to be needed by many, in order to address concerns related to stopping/changing hormone therapy, surgery/treatment complications and access to reversal interventions. Furthermore, the current study has shown that detransitioners need spaces to hear about other detransition stories and to exchange with each other. Unfortunately, the support that detransitioners are receiving in order to fulfill these needs appears to be very poor at the moment. Participants described strong difficulties with medical and mental health systems, as well as experiences of outright rejection from the LGBT+ community. Many respondents have expressed the wish to find alternative treatments to deal with their gender dysphoria but reported that it was impossible to talk about it within LGBT+ spaces and in the medical sphere. These accounts are concerning and they show the urgency to increase awareness and reduce hostility around the topic of detransition among healthcare providers and members of the LGBT+ community in order to address the specific needs of detransitioners.