Eli, Age 11

Eli was born biologically female, but it wasn’t long before his family suspected that there was more to the story. Wearing a dress “just seemed physically painful,” says his mother, Grace. The family has been working with pediatricians and gender specialists to find the best ways to help Eli become a healthy adult.

Steven Schlozman, associate director of the Clay Center for Young Healthy Minds at Massachusetts General Hospital, explores how today’s children are processing a new avalanche of media representations of transgender people.

And Nancy Etcoff, author of Survival of the Prettiest, talks about the legacy and future of an iconic hospital garment: the white coat.

Listen to this episode of the Proto podcast here.