[WATCH] How do puberty blockers work? 4 questions answered

Puberty blockers can be a life-saver for teenagers who experience gender dysphoria, which is an intense body discomfort that can affect people’s mental wellbeing.

The blockers pause the onset of adult traits associated with males and females (such as beards and breasts) to give a questioning teenager the time to consider whether they want to continue with a gender transition.

A survey of 20 000 transgender people in the United States found that people who had access to puberty blockers were less likely to have suicidal thoughts as adults.

People with gender dysphoria are more anxious and depressed than those who don’t have this body discomfort. But that changes once people start gender-affirming treatment. Find out more here.