What Elle recalls about her feelings around sex is a real thing for women and it is not abnormal!! It is not necessary to find a trauma or a reason for that fear. It is biologically embedded! Sex for a woman is dangerous and it's normal for a young woman to avoid it. Of course some other women experience less anxiety or fear about it- there's variation in nature - this doesn't make them less normal either! Men will probably never understand this shyness of women. Women need to feel safe and trust to have their libido going! Especially young women. But yes, her experiences online have only added on that natural inborn fear. I feel angry at people /society pushing ideas on to young women, that they must feel comfortable with sex and if they don't there's something wrong with them. No there's NOT.

I had a friend when I was in high school back in the 70s, whose dad took her off to Hawaii for a year and let her just have fun without going to school. Then she came back and did well. I always thought that was so caring and wise. More adults need to just listen to teenagers and give them compassion and caring and fun.

When Elle said it was the "trans" part of her identity she related to the most, that reminds me of my teen friend who says she has friends who have "detransitioned but are still trans." Obviously that doesn't make any sense unless you understand what this ideology means to them. The transformation is gnostic, spiritual, and then there's a performative layer, and then medicalizing layer. But those are like deeper layers that don't necessarily compromise on the trans identity, which is the most important part of staying within the circle. It would be reassuring if the movement could just wind things back to this first layer where the harm could be minimized but sadly I've been hearing about their disturbing desire to push for those deeper layers as a means of affirming their identity / belief. In having listened to these accounts, I've suspected that their plans to push to the next layer may be something they really don't want to do, in fact it may be wrenching at their soul, but perhaps that is what makes it a SELF SACRIFICE, which is a such a strong religious instinct. See Jordan Peterson's many many takes on Cain and Abel for what happens to the person who sacrifices everything but doesn't get rewarded by God. What comes flooding in once the sacrifice is rejected? Is it self reflection, despair, or a desire to destroy their ideal? That's what makes stories like Elle's, where she makes the pilgrimage and comes back disillusioned so damn important as unfortunately we need the honest accounts of unfortunate souls to show us where the pitfalls lie. Sorry for all the religious language but it just fits so perfectly to me.

She is beautiful God Have Mercy

Her story was one of the first things that peaked me and made me question if absolutely everyone with dysphoria should transition. Glad she’s doing okay.

It seems like spending more time in childhood interacting with nature and a little less time battling the perceptions of others online could have helped many of these kids avoid such a physically an emotionally tough journey. How she talks about being fascinated by mushrooms- watching and learning how they grow and the joy of being able to find them anywhere if you take the time to look is so childlike- not in an immature way but in the way that is relatable and sort of innocent- finding joy in the little things. Spending time in nature can make you love your body for the things it lets you do and explore and experience instead of wanting to escape you body due to how appearance/sex dictates how you are treated and perceived by others on the internet in particular. This interview makes me reflect a lot- I'm around Elle's age- was a messy, "neurodivergent" tomboy type girl- but raised pretty offline (so grateful for my hippy mom

I had the good fortune to work in an elementary school in a rough area for a year in the 80s serving free lunches to the entire school. The food was catered & was so delicious. It was adorable watching the kids complain about the food with huge smiles on their faces. Fed their bellies but it fed my soul because my “day job” was being a nanny for an awful family with a spoiled brat child who I couldn’t discipline by taking away any privileges or even talking to her sternly because it wasn’t allowed. I’ve always wondered why they hired me. It was so nice dropping her off at her private school every morning & heading to the hood to do something worthwhile. 💜

I used to watch Elle, and wondered what happened to her after her videos stopped. I'm so happy to see her doing well!

Go Elle!

Most grateful for this beautiful strong post. Love to Elle and cats. 1. At first there were many transitioners on KZfaq, then there were many detransitioners, mostly different people. Post transition situations seem to vary considerably. There tends to be a lack of conversations between detransitioners and those who stay transitioned. 2. In general there should be far more focus on the practical. It would help all round. This is now happening. Detransitioning seems a fairly new experience on a large scale. I am on the side of whatever works and is good including desistance. The following seem questions that are being answered over time: What variety of things work for those who have transitioned, for those who stay transitioned and for those who detransition ? What helps people who have chosen to detransition to do so ? What are the challenges of detransitioning ? Are there aspects of detransitioning that make it so difficult for some people that it makes it for some not possible or close to not possible to detransition, i e is it possible for everyone who has transitioned to detransition ? 3. If some anti trans campaigners and some churches, for example, tried to make detransitioning compulsory, that would be going too far.

You are looking great Elle! Good to see you doing well.

I remember seeing her video on r/detrans years ago when she posted it. At the time, she seemed like an anomaly. The detrans sub was not very active. So much has changed in just a few years.

Her videos have been popping into my recommended for the last few years and I would watch them. I found her videos very captivating about what she was going through.

I watched her KZfaq regularly.

A lovely conversation with a compassionate and down-to-earth young woman. May all your foraging be fruitful, Elle 🍄❤

Elle getting those gold stars for the reading workbook set the stage for her love of paperwork today 😂⭐

Love Elle!

Hi ben, would you consider doing interviews with parents to put on the record what it's like for them and for kids to see what their parents go through?

She has a lovely soul😊

Love your voice Benjamin, you're compassionate.

Elle you do have light around you. It will always be there, even during the darkest times. I’ve seen many of your videos & was so happy to see you doing an interview with Benjamin. I bet Buck Angel would love to interview you 😉 thank you for being so vulnerable & open. Your story will make a difference. I wish you the best & hope you make it to the west coast. 😊 🖤

Dearest Ben. I’m sure it would be a difficult task finding parents willing to speak about their child’s transition, if they detransitioned. How it impacted their family as a whole and so on. I think it would shed an important light on figures (parents) that seem to be forgotten in all this mess. Lots of love ❤❤❤

Tell Elle to check out this woman: Michelle’s memoir, Forager: Field Notes on Surviving a Family Cult, showcases her life growing up on an isolated mountain in California as part of an apocalyptic cult and how she found her way out of poverty and illness by drawing on the gifts of the wilderness.

Happy Birthday 🎉

Thanks ❤

Great conversations on here!! You are one of a kind! Gotta say I find this cultural/social phenomenon so… unhealthy. What is happening to adults?? I mean I live in the capital of a city in a European country. My daugher and her friends go to fine schools and colleges and are all doing fine. Nothing odd or special about them, their education, or lives. They hang out and the do drink together sometimes. Not one of them had sex before 17. Not one of them were even remotely interested in having sex when they were 14, 15 year old children. Nor did they appreciate being sexualized or approached by boys, let alone men, in a disrespectful manner. There was zero tolerance of those kinds of interaction in school and in public. What happened to our youth?? I saw a summery of what went down when a tv show here revealed how atrocious the gender affirming “care” has been here to a number of young girls. How their parents were lulled to sleep by assertive health professionals. What used to be a very positive force in our society, the association for sexual equality, shamed and attacked the very objective and measured journalism in the series. Wokeness at its worst. BUT the government and parliament and administrative bodys involved did take action. Pause. Research. Brakes are on. Still waiting for serious appologies from “health care” units and hospitals that used our children as ginneapigs in a manner totally atypical of the health care tradition and focus on childrens rights and well being in this country. Only in the case of the naïveté and failure to protect young victims of “pride/shame crimes” can I think of a parallel here. Luckily I do feel the tide is turning here. What is chocking is the cultlike virtue signalling. These interviews make me cry with frustration and sadness. How did we let this go on????

Elle, you have a really nice voice, very pleasant to listen to.

Loki is a good name for a cat, lol

It's sad people must go through this so the next generation can learn from it. It's like an awful experiment. God bless you and hope you continue to be happy.

You have a lovely voice Elle

I love your cats 🐈

Such a beauty!!!!

Negotiating feminity and masculinity. Fantastic. Great body of work.

I find interesting when Elle said that feminism focuses to much on the negative part. I think that needs to change. To create spaces where female energy and ideas are exchanged. I think this is very hard to create in a patriarchal organised society. I saw it very easily happening in matriarchal environments. Like native Americans are such matriarchal men's where women have their own space and are highly respected, and listened to. I find so many detransitioners who are female saying that they found it unacceptable to be a female in this world. That we all have to think about this, why so many girls do such things , to escape being female. Why are women and girls not respectful treated Patriarchal society is also the cause of femizide. We know this. And still we want to hold onto this social system. Why? Because we think that otherwise the women want to rule thd men? No, women do things diffrent. Everyone has a space there. It is not the opposite of patriarchy. It is very different organised.

Benjamin, thanks for this interview - interesting as usual. May I also suggest, given much you are looking at is tied in with the main foundations of 'Woke', that you could do no better than get Norman Finkelstein on your podcast, who, in his latest book ain't happy with woke, actually, he's more brutal than that, hence great value and highly informative for your audience.

Try crowdfunding the startup of your org!

❤

Also love AmeriCorps

Elle discussing the need for detrans support groups made me wonder if the 12-step model could be a useful framework to adapt? Admittedly I haven't thought about it for longer than a couple of minutes, but it seems an idea worth exploring further

💥💥💥💥💥

Hey Benjamin! Did you say you were moving? Is this your new place?

Wow.

Raised on the internet

Benjamin, I am reaching out with a specific question. I am a storytelling coach ( in the field since the 90's) who has started working completely pro bono with people who are detransitioning. I do this because a young person in my family is captured and my hands and tongue are tied until this situation resolves, so THIS is something meaningful I can do. I currently work with a mutual acquaintance. I support the writer/storyteller in the creation of whatever story in whatever genre they choose. ( Not just "transition stories) I do this work because I believe in the transformative impact of finding, shaping, and communicating our stories. These particular workshops are for detransitioners only, and therefore I must "vet" participants carefully. My question: if I introduced myself to you, share the name of our mutual friend so you can vet me, would you be interested or willing to privately share my offer to the detransitioners in your network? This is a free offer and will remain free. There are no strings attached.

Very interesting I can't help but think that the massive size schools in the US are damaging for kids at very least up to middle school. IE lost in the system that you do not really connect

It's interesting/disturbing that some want to be "trans" rather than be a man or woman.

You are a beautiful woman elle

Why do 'they' say only 1% detransition ? There are many many detransitioners.

Her voice is more feminine than two/three years ago.

Her parents failed her big time letting her on the internet without supervision

We shouldn’t let kids transition ok you mean like get the therapy or dress as the opposite gender

Sorry but where were Elle’s parents when she was watching porn on the internet at 8 years old?!!! 😣 my nephew is totally messed up now at the age of 22 because he was given a laptop at 9 and allowed to stay in his bedroom for hours on end and you know what he was watching. Now he struggles with social anxiety and has not had any relationships only online.

Poor girl her voice is ruined , she will never sing again

She seems on the spectrum.

Can you please dont breath that hard in front 9f the microphone is annoying

Elle said she struggles with anxiety and panic attacks. I found these people to be helpful: “DARE” KZfaq channel m.kzfaq.info/get/bejne/f6-mpJue3dzbfZ8.html Shaan Kassam m.youtube.com/@anxiety_recovery