Insight

Anti-immigration sentiment is on the rise globally, and polls show more than half of Australians believe migration rates are too high. So, what's behind the numbers? Insight explores the impacts of immigration on our communities, economy and national identity and asks what it all means for a cohesive, multicultural society?

You are entitled to your views, but do the rest of us have to hear them? Are terms such as "cancelled", "free speech" and "cultural safety" used in place of constructive, respectful debate? On this episode, Insight asks students, families, politicians, protesters and academics: "Have we lost the ability to disagree well?"

Have you ever flirted to make a partner jealous? Do you envy a friend's life? Are people jealous of you? Jealousy is driven by an underlying sense of insecurity and low self-esteem. Envy can lead to a feeling of inferiority. Can we embrace these emotions and use them for good?

Insight this week asks members of the trans community about striking the right balance as medical pathways for trans minors in parts of Australia – and around the world - become restricted.

In Australia, people under 18 generally require guardian consent and a diagnosis of gender dysphoria (also referred to as gender incongruence) for medical practitioners to provide gender-affirming treatments.

However, legislative changes in Queensland and the Northern Territory mean doctors in the public system can no longer prescribe gender-affirming medication to new trans patients under 18. Patients already accessing this care can continue their treatment. 

Not all trans and gender diverse people experience gender dysphoria, and the term itself is contentious due to the concern it stigmatises trans healthcare as a mental health condition.

In 2019, the World Health Organization approved changes to its ICD-11 manual (effective 2022) to declassify transgender health issues as mental disorders and reclassified "gender incongruence" under sexual health.

"Gender dysphoria" still appears in the American Psychiatric Association's diagnostic manual (DSM-5) as a diagnosis of distress that can help provide access to medical treatment and support.

Gender-affirming medical treatments currently available in Australia to trans youth include puberty blockers, gender-affirming hormone therapy (GAHT), typically from age 16, and in rare cases, gender-affirming chest surgery (more commonly known as 'top surgery').

Puberty blockers, administered in the early stages of puberty, are a medication that temporarily suppresses sex hormone production to delay puberty and its physical changes, such as breast development or voice deepening.

Teens usually around age 16 and adults can be prescribed GAHT, which is the medical administration of estrogen or testosterone to help align a person's secondary sex characteristics (such as body fat distribution, voice pitch and body hair) with their gender identity.