Paul Garcia-Ryan is a conservative American social worker and ex-transgender activist. Garcia-Ryan believes people under age 26 should not get trans healthcare under an informed consent model.
Do not go to Garcia-Ryan for therapy. If you are a minor forced to see Garcia-Ryan, do everything in your power to end the sessions and find a supportive local therapist.
Background
Paul A. Garcia-Ryan was born on June 17, 1991. At age 15, Garcia-Ryan reportedly met with a therapist about gender identity and expression.
As an adult, Garcia-Ryan began using the name Charlotte Garcia-Ryan and took medical transition steps.
Garcia-Ryan earned a bachelor’s degree from Alfred University in 2014 and a master’s degree from Hunter College in 2018.
In 2021, at age 30, Garcia-Ryan made additional gender changes following reportedly poor surgical results.
Practice
Garcia-Ryan is president of Therapy First, a directory of therapists who believe they should be paid to determine if trans and gender diverse people should be allowed to undertake medical transition steps.
Garcia-Ryan has been affiliated with the Open Therapy Institute and was listed with these therapists:
- Camilo Ortiz
- Katherine Cullen
- Neil Kressel
- Paul Garcia-Ryan
That site stated: “Paul Garcia-Ryan is a New York City based psychotherapist providing care to a wide variety of patients, including gay and lesbian adults who don’t feel they have a place in LGBT culture and individuals/families facing gender related challenges.”
Garcia-Ryan feels that young adults should not be allowed to make a gender transition unless they pay for “gender exploratory therapy” from Garcia-Ryan or other conservative colleagues.
Garcia-Ryan is listed on the Gender Exploratory Therapy Association site. “Gender exploratory therapy” is a non-affirming model of care. The American Academy of Pediatrics calls this practice “delayed transition” and advises against it.
Garcia-Ryan’s promotional site includes quotes from anti-trans activists Lisa Marchiano, Leonore Tiefer, and Lisa Selin Davis.
Ex-transgender activism
Garcia-Ryan was an invited participant at a 2023 anti-trans conference organized by the Society for Evidence-Based Gender Medicine.
In 2024, Garcia-Ryan was featured in a New York Times article by anti-trans activist Pamela Paul. Garcia-Ryan stated:
“When a professional affirms a gender identity for a younger person, what they are doing is implementing a psychological intervention that narrows a person’s sense of self and closes off their options for considering what’s possible for them.”
Paul (2024)
References
Paul, Pamela (February 2, 2024). As Kids, They Thought They Were Trans. They No Longer Do. New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/02/opinion/transgender-children-gender-dysphoria.html
Resources
Paul Garcia-Ryan (paulgarciaryan.com)
LinkedIn (linkedin.com)
Licensure
- NPI 1326685694
- NY License # 093503
Brooklyn Holistic Therapy (brooklynholisticpsychotherapy.com)
Open Therapy Institute (opentherapyinstitute.org)
Therapy First (therapyfirst.org)
Twitter (twitter.com)
Psychology Today (psychologytoday.com)
- Paul Garcia-Ryan
- https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/therapists/paul-garcia-ryan-brooklyn-ny/427351