Being able to talk about gender at a young age "helps them learn who they are as people later on," Jennifer Schwartz says.

County health departments are now trying to get firm counts of LGBTQ residents in their communities to better provide them services, and schools may soon follow suit. The efforts come amid a flurry of legislation in Michigan and elsewhere to limit transgender access to health care and sports.

Some health clinics require letters of mental health support as a prerequisite to receiving treatment. The Corner Health Center uses an informed consent model instead, where the patient, their family, and a doctor discuss the treatment and its effects at length, according to Lori Bennett, the clinic director. "We believe people can consent to their own care and don't need other people saying they're okay to get this kind of help," Bennett said.

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