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Many trans male, trans masculine or non-binary identified young people who are assigned female at birth report that distress can focus on chest development.
This can be the trigger for social anxiety and can lead to withdrawal from social activities such as interacting with family and friends, being able to attend school, or in some cases leaving the house at all.
Some young people use a chest binder to help reduce social anxiety and thoughts of self-harm. We know some young people say that wearing a binder decreases anxiety in social situations and in some cases has given them confidence to start back in education.
We also know that there are also potential downsides. Prolonged use of a binder can be extremely uncomfortable. Some methods of binding can be dangerous.
Some young people coming to our service are already using binders. families often ask us for advice about using binders.
To minimise harm, we make recommendations based on a recent meta-analysis of the evidence and more recent research in the field. When families ask us about their use, we offer strategies to reduce potential harm:
Read the paper, ‘Health impact of chest binding among transgender adults: a community-engaged, cross-sectional study’ (2016)
Read the paper, ‘The Impact of Chest Binding in Transgender and Gender Diverse Youth and Young Adults’ (2021)
Read the paper, ‘Chest Binding and Care Seeking Among Transmasculine Adults: A Cross-Sectional Study’ (2018)
Read more about reducing harm if wearing a binder on the Genderkit website