David Reimer and his twin brother were both born in 1965, but at the age of eight months, a circumcision procedure unintentionally destroyed David’s penis. Dr. Jean-Marie Huot, a general practitioner, performed the circumcision using the unusual method of electrocauterization. David’s penis was severely burned and could not be repaired surgically as a result of the procedure not going as planned.

Dr. John Money, a psychologist who thought that gender was a social construct and that a child could be raised as either male or female regardless of their biological sex, was recommended to his parents. Dr. Money suggested that David have gender reassignment surgery and be raised as a girl based on this theory.

The surgery was approved by David’s parents, who raised him as a girl and gave him the new name Brenda. David, however, struggled with his gender identity as he grew older and never fully identified as a woman. David started to feel more alone and depressed despite taking hormone treatments and having additional surgeries to create female genitalia.

He decided to live as a man at the age of 14 and underwent additional surgeries to undo the gender reassignment procedure.

David Reimer’s Fight for Identity

David was given estrogen during his adolescence, which caused the growth of breasts.

Money tracked Reimer’s development for several years under the heading “John/Joan case.” “The child’s actions are clearly those of an energetic young girl and significantly different from the masculine behavior of her twin brother,” wrote Money.

Reimer first experienced suicidal depression when he was 13 years old and told his parents that he would commit suicide if they made him see Money once more.

Following recommendations from Reimer’s endocrinologist and psychiatrist, his parents came clean about his gender reassignment on March 14, 1980. After learning about his past from his father at the age of 14, Reimer decided to identify as a man and took the name David.

He underwent a number of procedures to undo his gender reassignment, including phalloplasty surgeries, double mastectomy, and testosterone injections.

Following recommendations from Reimer’s endocrinologist and psychiatrist, his parents came clean about his gender reassignment on March 14, 1980. After learning about his past from his father at the age of 14, Reimer decided to identify as a man and took the name David.

He underwent a number of procedures to undo his gender reassignment, including phalloplasty surgeries, double mastectomy, and testosterone injections.

When Reimer told Milton Diamond, a sexologist in academia, his story in 1997, it became widely known. Reimer was persuaded by Diamond to allow him to publish the findings in order to dissuade medical professionals from giving other infants the same treatments.

Reimer’s wife Jane gave him notice that she wanted to end their marriage on May 2, 2004. Reimer drove to the parking lot of a grocery store in his hometown of Winnipeg the following morning, May 4, 2004, and fatally shot himself in the head with a sawed-off shotgun. He was 38.

The Ethics of Gender Reassignment

The David Reimer case brought up significant issues regarding the morality of gender reassignment surgery and the function of doctors in establishing a person’s gender identity. Many detractors claim that Dr. Money’s methods for gender reassignment were unethical and that they were based on faulty science.

The incident has sparked debates on the value of informed consent and the necessity for medical professionals to take into account the long-term effects of their decisions.

The Medical Community’s Response to the David Reimer Case

Some have criticized the medical community’s response to the David Reimer case for failing to consider the moral ramifications of gender reassignment surgery. According to detractors, the medical profession should have exercised more caution when endorsing gender reassignment surgery and should have understood the complexity of gender identity more thoroughly.