Advertisement Lucy's story: Transgender children in Maine Program at Barbara Bush Children's Hospital helps guide transgender children Share Shares Copy Link Copy

Like so many 9-year-old girls, Lucy Tidd loves to dance."I love that I am flexible and that I can do a bunch of stunts and stuff in my dancing and that I am very athletic," she says.Lucy also loves music. She says her favorite music is hip hop, but she also likes jazz. Lucy also knows how to play the keyboard.She is a typical young girl, but Lucy was not always Lucy. She was born Benjamin Thomas Tidd in 2006.Lucy's mother says Benjamin was headstrong from birth and struggled with behavioral issues, but she also noticed other differences."We noticed at a young age there was this tendancy to want to dress up, and want to do what I do everyday," said Bridget. "He used to love if I had high heels on, he would love to hear the sound, he would say 'I love that sound mumma, I love that sound.'"At first, the Tidds thought it was just a stage, but one moment changed everything."He said to me, 'Mom, I wish I could die and God could bring me back as a girl,'" said Bridget, "And that was the moment we said, 'We would rather have our child be with a different name and identify with who she wants to be than (be) a child who isn't here at all."The Tidds then sought help at the Gender Clinic at the Barbara Bush Children's Hospital, which specializes in helping children who are struggling with gender identity."About one in four will attempt suicide, about half will consider suicide during adolescence and so our big goal is how do we help this population do better in the long run," said Dr. Jerrold Olshan, a pediatric endocrinologist at the hospital. "This isn't a choice in most individuals, this is probably biologically programmed."Dr. Erin Belfort, a child and adolescent psychiatrist, agrees."These kids aren't just wishing to be the other gender, they come into my office saying 'I am not a girl, I am a boy, this doesn't feel right.'"Belfort says it is crucial for transgender children to get the proper support from their families and the medical community."We know that these kids have much higher rates of depression, anxiety, (and) problems with substance abuse, and much of that we understand to be related to stigma."For the Tidds, they say their daughter is an inspiration."It's a success story, it really is a success story and we couldn't be more proud of our daughter."Lucy hopes that sharing her story will help other kids like her."There are other people out there like me who have parents who have gotten through it. They toughed through it, they got through it and it's not impossible."