First‑Year Mental Effects of Gender Care

A prospective cohort design can track depression, anxiety and suicidality during the first year after transgender and nonbinary adolescents begin gender‑affirming care, and test whether starting puberty blockers or hormones is associated with rapid changes in these outcomes. Short‑term trajectories (weeks–months) may differ from long‑term trends and are what policymakers often cite when proposing restrictions. — Short‑term outcome data matter because legislators, courts, and clinicians are debating immediate safety and access for minors — not only long‑term effects.