Table of Contents

Support Groups and Resources

TIGERRS Facebook Group

• TIGERRS - Trans Intersex Gender-Expansive Revolutionary Resources & Services
• Support and resources for parents and children
• Community meetups

Tigerrs: Trans Intersex Gender-Expansive Revolutionary Resources & Services | Minneapolis MN

Transfamilies

• Online support groups for LGBTQ+ individuals and their families
• Non-profit/donations-based company - membership is a “pay what you can” design and can be free to those who cannot afford to contribute

Home

PFLAG

• Resources and support for LGBTQ+ individuals and their loved ones/support systems
• Online and in-person support groups for parents and children

Homepage - PFLAG

Queerspace Collective

• The first mentorship program created specifically for LGBTQ+ youth in Minnesota.
• Offers mentorship for LGBTQ+ youth, training and support seminars for parents and caregivers, and events to build connections/community
  • All services are offered at a sliding-scale cost to promote affordability and equitable access (can be free to those who are unable to donate)
• Based in the Twin Cities and St. Cloud

LGBTQ+ youth mentorship | QUEERSPACE collective | Minnesota

Walk-In Counseling Center

• Completely free and anonymous counseling services from volunteer counseling professionals
• Availability:
  • Monday, Wednesday, Friday afternoons:  1:00p – 3:00p for both in-person and virtual (phone and login) services
  • Monday through Thursday evenings: 5:30p – 7:30p virtual services only

Free Counseling Services - Walk-In

Reading Recommendations

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• Paria Hassouri, MD | On Thanksgiving morning, Paria Hassouri finds herself furiously praying and negotiating with the universe as she irons a dress her fourteen-year-old, designated male at birth, has secretly purchased and wants to wear to dinner with the extended family. In this wonderfully frank, loving, and practical account of parenting a transgender teen, Paria chronicles what amounts to a dual transition: as her child transitions from male to female, she navigates through anger, denial, and grief to eventually arrive at acceptance. Despite her experience advising other parents in her work as a pediatrician, she was blindsided by her child’s gender identity. Paria is also forced to examine how she still carries insecurities from her past of growing up as an Iranian-American immigrant in a predominantly white neighborhood, and how her life experience is causing her to parent with fear instead of love. Paria discovers her capacity to evolve, as well as what it really means to parent and the deepest nature of unconditional love.

This page-turning memoir relates a tender story of loving and parenting a teenager coming out as transgender and transitioning. It explores identity, self-discovery in adolescence and midlife, and difference in a world that values conformity. At its heart, Found in Transition is a universally inspiring portrait of what it means to be a family. | | Transitions of the Heart: Stories of Love, Struggle and Acceptance by Mothers of Transgender and Gender Variant Children

• Rachel Pepper | Here is the first book to ever invite mothers of transgender and gender variant children of all ages to tell their own stories about their child's gender transition. It offers a view that will educate everyone about the trans experience. It offers emotional support to family and friends close to someone experience transition and educations to those who may not fully understand what the “T” in LGBTQ means.

What do mothers really think of their transgender and gender variant children? Sharing stories of love, struggle, and acceptance, this collection of mother's voices, representing a diversity of backgrounds and sexual orientations, affirms the experience of those who have raised and are currently raising transgender and gender variant children between the ages of 5-50. There are stories here of birth mothers and adoptive mothers, single mothers and married mothers, stepmothers and grandmothers, and heterosexual mothers and lesbian mothers. They have children of all ages, ranging fro six to sixty. Their children are gender nonconforming, gender variant, gender queer, transgender, and “pink boys.” Many mothers are active in PFLAG groups and other community based support groups. Often "transitioning" socially and emotionally alongside their child but rarely given a voice in the experience, mothers hold the key to familial and societal understanding of gender difference.

Edited by Rachel Pepper, a gender specialist and co-author of the acclaimed book The Transgender Child, Transitions of the Heart includes both a glossary of terms as well as a resource guide. It will prove an invaluable resource for parents coming to terms with a child's gender variance or transition. | | Thriving Through Transition: Self-Care for Parents of Transgender Children

• Denise O'Doherty | “Mom, Dad - I’m transgender” In one second our lives can change forever and that is what happens to many parents when a child “comes out” and tells them they are transgender. Even if you had a suspicion that something was “different” about your child, parents still experience a multitude of conflicting feelings about how this will affect their child, themselves, their family and others in their lives. Whether your child is 5 or 50, most parents are not prepared to know what to say, what do next or how to care for themselves in the process of what is about to unfold in their lives. This book was written to make it easier for parents. To give parents insight and awareness to understand what happens to them when their child “comes out” as transgender and to give parents direction and effective suggestions on how to deal with the many issues parents commonly face with a transgender child. Issues include dealing with grief, denial, depression, anger, shame and guilt. Knowing what to say to others and how to deal with resistance. How to deal with religious, cultural and social issues. Most importantly, how parents can reach a level of acceptance and why this is essential for the parent. It emphasizes the importance of love and compassion deserving not only to transgender children but especially to the parents who raise them. In addition to parents, this book can educate family members, teachers, educators, clergy, counselor’s therapists, psychologists, psychiatrists, nurses, other related healthcare professionals and anyone who loves a transgender person. | | Unconditional: A Guide to Loving and Supporting Your LGBTQ Child
• Telaina Eriksen | Unconditional is a parenting guide book that provides parents of an LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or questioning) child with a framework for helping their LGBT child navigate a world that isn’t always welcoming.

Tips from a mother with experience: In Unconditional, author Telaina Eriksen, a professor at Michigan State University, explains what she and her husband have learned through the experience of parenting a gay child. She covers topics like how to handle kids coming out, being an advocate for LGBTQ+ children, how to help your child deal with stress unique to LGBTQ+ kids, and finding a LGBTQ+ family. This book is a must read for anyone who thinks their child is transgender or otherwise LGBTQ+.

A guide for supporting your LGBT child: What if my child is transgender? Eriksen covers the science of gender, understanding gender dysphoria, and how to help a transgender child through the stages of development. What if I have more general LGBTQ+ family needs? Throughout the book, both parents and kids share their stories, and Eriksen directs parents to various resources online for help. This LGBT family book teaches the principles of unconditional parenting, love, and learning.

Inside, learn:

• How to advocate for policies that protect your child
• Ways to educate well-meaning, but misguided friends or family
• Strategies keep your kid talking if your child is transgender or LGBTQ+
• Signs of unhealthy relationships
• When to consider therapy for your child or your family
• How to find an LGBTQ+ community (including inclusive churches) | | This is a Book for Parents of Gay Kids: A Question & Answer Guide to Everyday Life
• Dan Owens-Reid and Kristin Russo | Written in an accessible Q&A format, here, finally, is the go-to resource for parents hoping to understand and communicate with their gay child. Through their LGBTQ-oriented site, the authors are uniquely experienced to answer parents' many questions and share insight and guidance on both emotional and practical topics. Filled with real-life experiences from gay kids and parents, this is the book gay kids want their parents to read. | | Coming Out, Coming Home: Helping Families Adjust to a Gay or Lesbian Child
• Michael LaSala, PhD | The discovery that a child is lesbian or gay can send shockwaves through a family. A mother will question how she's raised her son; a father will worry that his daughter will experience discrimination. From the child's perspective, gay and lesbian youth fear their families will reject them and that they will lose financial and emotional support. All in all, learning a child is gay challenges long-held views about sexuality and relationships, and the resulting uncertainty can produce feelings of anger, resentment, and concern.

Through a qualitative, multicultural study of sixty-five gay and lesbian children and their parents, Michael LaSala, a leading expert on this issue, outlines effective, practice-tested interventions for families in transition. His research reveals surprising outcomes, such as learning that a child is homosexual can improve familial relationships, including father-child relationships, even if a parent reacts strongly or negatively to the revelation. By confronting feelings of depression, anxiety, and grief head on, LaSala formulates the best approach for practitioners who hope to reestablish intimacy among family members and preserve family connections—as well as individual autonomy—well into the child's maturation. By restricting his study to parents and children of the same family, LaSala accurately captures the reciprocal effects of family interactions, identifying them as targets for effective treatment. Coming Out, Coming Home is also a valuable text for families, enabling adjustment through relatable scenarios and analyses. | | The Transgender Child: Revised & Updated Edition: A Handbook for Parents and Professionals Supporting Transgender and Nonbinary Children

• Stephanie Brill and Rachel Pepper | Ever since its initial publication in 2008, The Transgender Child has been lauded as the most trusted source of information for families wanting to understand and affirm their transgender, gender-expansive, or nonbinary child. Utilized around the world and translated into multiple languages, The Transgender Child has won accolades from medical and mental health professionals, teachers, and, most especially, from parents. Authors Stephanie Brill and Rachel Pepper have now thoroughly revised and updated their ground-breaking classic with expanded coverage of gender development, affirming parenting practices, mental health and wellness, medical decision making, legal advocacy, and how best to ensure school success, from preschool through the high school years. Drawing upon their extensive joint expertise as pioneers in the field of gender affirming care, and enriched with the wisdom of parents who’ve already walked this path, as well as the voices of multiple professional experts, Brill and Pepper once again provide a compassionate and educational guide for anyone who cares about, or works with, a child who falls outside expected gender norms. | | The Transgender Teen: A Handbook for Parents and Professionals Supporting Transgender and Non-Binary Teens
• Stephanie Brill and Lisa Kenney | Is it just a phase, a fad, or a real issue with your teen? This comprehensive guidebook explores the unique challenges that thousands of families face every day raising a teenager who may be transgender, gender-variant or gender-fluid. Covering extensive research and with many personal interviews, as well as years of experience working in the field, the author covers pressing concerns relating to physical and emotional development, social and school pressures, medical options, and family communications. Learn how parents can advocate for their children, find acceptable colleges and career paths, and raise their gender variant or transgender adolescent with love and compassion. |

Media

Podcasts

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• 20-30 minute episode length | | Gender Reveal | Welcome to Gender Reveal, a podcast that centers nonbinary, transgender, and queer folks. Join us as we interview LGBTQ+ artists, activists, and educators; answer listener questions; analyze current events; and get a little bit closer to understanding what the heck gender is. | - New episodes weekly
• 40-60 minute episode length
• More geared towards older adolescents, young adults, and family/loved ones | | The Transgenda | The funny, touching, and informative chronicle of Ana, a transgender woman and Cam, her cisgender dad, as they share their experiences of growing together and hating bigots. | - 1-2 new episodes each month
• 20-60 minute episode length |