Detransitioner Files First Lawsuit In Canada Against Medical Providers

Ontario woman who was transgender, underwent hormone therapy, bilateral mastectomy and hysterectomy. She also filed the first Canadian lawsuit against her healthcare providers for helping her transition. 

Michelle Zacchigna is a 34-year old woman from Orillia (Ontario). She recently announced a lawsuit against eight mental health professionals and doctors who treated her over the years. The suit claims that they failed her mental health needs and allowed her to self diagnose as transgender, and she was forced to go through irreversible treatments that she now regrets. 

“I’ve been holding this card close to my chest for a while, and I’m ready to show it,” Zacchingna, Tuesday “In November 2022, I commenced legal action against the Canadian health care providers that facilitated my medical transition in Ontario.”

Zacchigna’s journey began in 2009, at the age of 21. After years of suffering from depression, anxiety, and self-harm, she attempted suicide. “gender identity” online. She believed that her problems were caused by being transgender. This belief was never challenged or challenged by healthcare providers. 

Zacchigna was a member of a support group called “The Group” in Toronto, spring 2010. “Gender Journeys,” After a one-hour appointment, she was referred to a doctor for male hormone therapy. Zacchigna was also recommended hormone therapy by her regular therapist, despite the fact that she had a long history of severe mental health problems. Zacchigna was finally prescribed testosterone after three appointments with another doctor.

A surgeon in Florida removed Zacchigna’s breasts in 2012 after Zacchigna received an order from her doctors to have a bilateral mastectomy. After being referred to by another doctor, Zacchigna had a 2017 hysterectomy. After realizing that her mental and developmental disabilities were the root of the problems she was having, Zacchigna decided that it was time to detransition. “much more succinctly than identifying as transgender ever had.” She regrets deeply the unreversible procedures she had to go through.

“I will live the rest of my life without breasts, with a deepened voice and male-pattern balding, and without the ability to get pregnant. Removing my completely healthy uterus is my greatest regret,” Zacchigna Submitted A blog post for Lighthouse Forum

Zacchigna sues to claim that the healthcare providers she received failed to address her mental health and developmental disabilities. Instead, they offered irreversible medical intervention. 

“The Defendants permitted Michelle to self-diagnose as transgender and prescribe her own treatment without providing a differential diagnosis or proposing alternative treatments,” This is the Statement of Claim that was submitted to the Ontario Superior Court of Justice.

Zacchigna claims that her desire for transgender identity was never challenged and that she wasn’t provided with adequate counseling or therapy. She believes in the following: “affirmative” Model of gender care is to blame. In which clinics “affirm” Instead of psychotherapy that focuses on the psychological reasons for distressing bodies, a medical intervention can be used to help a patient self-diagnose as transgender. 

Zacchigna’s story highlights the inability to inquire about patients’ mental well-being and reasons for seeking help. “gender-affirming” healthcare. Despite her history of mental illness and no signs of gender-related distress during childhood or adolescence, Zacchigna was allowed to continue with irreversible procedures that can have lasting effects.

Zacchigna is one of a number of transitioned people who are taking legal action against gender affirming healthcare providers. They claim that they failed to treat their mental health needs and caused them injury. Francis Shapiro Munn represents Zacchigna on contingency, but she is also Crowdfunding For expenses such as hiring specialists and obtaining medical records. 

“Through this action I am not only seeking justice for myself but also hoping to raise awareness about the reckless nature of ‘gender-affirming’ health care,” Zacchigna stated.

“Concerns about it have been raised internationally, with several countries altering their approach in response to systematic reviews of the evidence. However, here in Canada, discussion about it has barely gotten off the ground. I hope to start the conversation,” She continued.

Sweden, England, and Finland have conducted systematic reviews of the available evidence on pediatric medical transition, as has Florida’s Boards of Medicine, with each concluding that the risks far outweigh any purported benefits. This resulted in the closure of prominent gender clinics, strict restrictions on the use of cross-sex hormonesAnd banning gender-related surgeries for minors. Italy, AustraliaAnd Spain’s Similar concerns have been raised by medical organizations.

In the USA, Chloe Cole Camille Kiefel For facilitating their medical transformation, they are also suing healthcare providers. Both Zacchigna & Kiefel claim that they were mentally ill adults when they consented for irreversible medical interventions. Cole was 13 years old at the beginning of her transition.