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Wellness

I’m a pediatrician who cares for transgender kids – here’s what you need to know

I’m a pediatrician who cares for transgender kids – here’s what you need to know
Photo by Kyle on Unsplash

When Charlie, a 10-year-old boy, came in for his first visit, he didn't look at me or my colleague. Angry and crying, he insisted to us that he was cisgender – that he was a boy and had been born male.

A few months before Charlie came into our office, he handed a note to his mother with four simple words, "I am a boy." Up until that point Charlie had been living in the world as female – the sex he was assigned at birth – though that was not how he felt inside. Charlie was suffering from severe gender dysphoria – a sense of distress someone feels when their gender identity doesn't match up with their assigned gender.

I am a pediatrician and adolescent medicine specialist who has been caring for transgender youth for over a decade using what is called a gender-affirmative approach. In this type of care, medical and mental health providers work side by side to provide education to the patient and family, guide people to social support, address mental health issues and discuss medical interventions.


Getting on the same page

The first thing our team does is make sure our patients and families understand what gender care is. We always begin initial visits in the same way. "Our goal is to support you and your family on this journey, whatever that may look like for you. My name is Mandy and I am one of the doctors at CATCH – the Child and Adolescent Trans/Gender Center for Health program. I use she/her pronouns." Sharing pronouns helps transgender people feel seen and validated.

We then ask patients and families to share their gender journey so we can better understand where they are coming from and where they hope to go. Charlie's story is one we often hear. A kid may not think much about gender until puberty but begins to experience worsening gender dysphoria when their body starts changing in what feels like the wrong way.

Support and acceptance from family has a huge impact on a transgender person's mental health. AP Photo/Lynne Sladky

Social transitions with family help

Transgender and gender-diverse youth (those whose gender identity doesn't conform to the norms expected of their assigned sex) may face transphobia and discrimination, and experience alarmingly higher rates of depression, anxiety, self-harm and suicide than their cisgender peers. One option can be to socially transition to their identified gender, both at home and in the outside world.

An important first step is to help parents become allies and advocates. Connecting parents with one-to-one as well as group support can help facilitate education and acceptance, while helping families process their own experience. Charlie's parents had been attending a local parent group that helped them better understand gender dysphoria.

In addition to being accepted at home, young people often want to live in the world in their identified gender. This could include changing their name and pronouns and coming out to friends and family. It can also include using public spaces like schools and bathrooms, participating on single-gender sports teams and dressing or doing other things like binding breasts or tucking back male genitalia to present more in line with their gender identity. Though more research needs to be done, studies show that youth who socially transition have rates of depression similar to cisgender peers.

Many young people find that making a social transition can be an important step in affirming identity. For those that still struggle with depression, anxiety and managing societal transphobia, seeing a therapist who has knowledge of and experience with gender-diverse identities and gender dysphoria can also be helpful.

However, most young people also need to make physical changes to their bodies as well to feel truly comfortable.

Medical options for transgender youth can include hormone blockers or hormone therapy as a first step. AP Photo/Lynne Sladky

Gender-affirming medical interventions

When I first met Charlie, he had already socially transitioned but was still experiencing dysphoria. Charlie, like many people, wanted his physical body to match his gender identity, and this can be achieved only through medical interventions – namely, puberty blockers, hormonal medications or surgery.

For patients like Charlie who have started experiencing early female or male puberty, hormone blockers are typically the first option. These medications work like a pause button on the physical changes caused by puberty. They are well studied, safe and completely reversible. If a person stops taking hormone blockers, their body will resume going through puberty as it would have. Blockers give people time to further explore gender and to develop social supports. Studies demonstrate that hormone blockers reduce depression, anxiety and risk of suicide among transgender youth.

Once a person has started or completed puberty, taking prescribed hormones can help people match their bodies with their gender identities. One of my patients, Zoe, is an 18-year-old transgender woman who has already completed male puberty. She is taking estrogen and a medication to block the effects of testosterone. Together, these will help Zoe's body develop breasts, reduce hair growth and have an overall more female shape.

Leo, another one of my patients, is a 16-year-old transgender man who is using testosterone. Testosterone will deepen Leo's voice, help him grow facial hair and lead to a more male body shape. In addition to testosterone, transgender men can use an additional short-term medication to stop menstruation. For nonbinary people like my 15-year-old patient Ty, who is not exclusively masculine or feminine, my colleagues and I personalize their treatments to meet their specific need.

The health risks from taking hormones are incredibly small – not significantly different, in fact, than the risks a cisgender person faces from the hormones in their body. Some prescribed hormone effects are partially reversible, but others are more permanent, like voice deepening and growth of facial hair or breasts. Hormones can also impact fertility, so I always make sure that my patients and their families understand the process thoroughly.

The most permanent medical options available are gender-affirming surgeries. These operations can include changes to genitals, chest or breasts and facial structure. Surgeries are not easily reversible, so my colleagues and I always make sure that patients fully understand this decision. Some people think gender-affirming surgeries go too far and that minors are too young to make such a big decision. But based on available research and my own experience, patients who get these surgeries experience improvements in their quality of life through a reduction in dysphoria. I have been told by patients that gender-affirming surgery "literally saved my life. I was free [from dysphoria]."

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Ongoing gender care

In March 2021, nearly five years after our first visit, Charlie walked into my exam room. When we first met, he was struggling with his gender, anxiety and depression. This time, he immediately started talking about playing hockey, hanging out with friends and making the honor roll. He has been on hormone blockers for five years and testosterone for almost a year. With the help of a supportive family and a gender-competent therapist, Charlie is now thriving.

Being transgender is not something that goes away. It is something my patients live with for their entire lives. Our multidisciplinary care team continues to see patients like Charlie on a regular basis, often following them into young adulthood.

While more research is always needed, a gender-affirmative approach and evidence-based medicine allows young transgender people to live in the world as their authentic selves. This improves quality of life and saves lives, as one of our transgender patients said about his experience receiving gender-affirming care. "I honestly don't think I would be here had I not been allowed to transition at that point. I'm not always 100%. But I have hope. I am happy to see tomorrow and I know I will achieve my dreams."


Mandy Coles is a Clinical Associate Professor of Pediatrics and co-director of the Child and Adolescent Trans/Gender Center for Health at Boston University.

This article first appeared on The Conversation. You can read it here.

Modern Families

Husband who lost his job reluctantly moves family in with mother-in-law. Pure joy ensued.

Families moving in together isn't failure. Sometimes it's their greatest success.

Image via Canva

Katie Bunton shares her family's journey with multigenerational living.

Multigenerational living is not as common in our independent, self-sufficient American culture–but Instagrammer Katie Bunton (@ktbunton) is hoping her experience will open more people's minds to it. Bunton, her husband Harry and their twin boys recently moved in with their mother-in-law Louella Beale (@nana_lulu_love) after experiencing financial hardship, and opened up about the experience with her followers.

"We moved in with my MIL (mother-in-law) 2 months ago when my husband lost his job and I just keep thinking...it must have taken a lot of propaganda to make us believe this was failure," she writes in the video's caption.

In the inspiring video, Bunton showed her viewers some of the incredible benefits they've had with the extra support of Nana Lulu. From making and eating meals together to time spent in the garden and doing other menial daily tasks, she shows that life has truly improved–even though society may look at their living situation differently. "So you’re telling me, this isn’t how it was supposed to be all along ? #multigenerationalliving with @nana_lulu_love 🫶🏽," she captioned the video.

And viewers are showing their support. "I wholeheartedly believe that we’re supposed to be living with family❤️," one wrote. Another added, "It’s the best. My grandmother and mother live with us. I could never asked for a better support system. I would never ever live without multiple generations in the same house or compound." And another shared, "This has forever been my dream 😢 I’m with you, we’ve been lied to in the west. Intergenerational living is beautiful and to me the gold standard for living in harmony and raising children well ❤️."

And Nana Lulu herself commented, "🥹🥹😭😍😍 I’m such a lucky lucky so and so. 🙏🏽Thank you 🙏🏽 thank you 🙏🏽 thank you 🙏🏽 for the beautiful blessings of family love. 💛💛💛💛"

In another video, Bunton shared a vlog with her followers showing more about living with her MIL and the benefits of living multigenerationally. "You’re telling me we could have both parents present and hands on, all we have to do is just lower our cost of living? spend less money? And pool our resources with family? 🤯" she wrote.

In the video, she explains that her family moved in with Nana Lulu at the end of January 2025. "It's taken us quite a while to get into the swing of things. We moved into a new town as well," she adds.

Their routine has completely changed, but in a good way. And she has noticed positive changes in her relationship. "My husband has felt happier, lighter and more himself than I have ever seen him," she says.

The second video also got tons of positive comments from viewers who are loving their new living situation. "This is my definition of rich ❤️," one wrote. Another added, "As someone that doesn’t have a MIL to fall back on, I just want you to know that I’m so happy you have that. So happy you know the peace that extended family can bring and that you/your husband have the support you need to get to the next stage 🫶🏼💕." And another shared, "My husband and I live with my parents. They built us a basement apartment and I am forever grateful to them not only for that but for the bond it has allowed them to have with my kiddos ❤️ I definitely get caught up thinking we’ve done something wrong but we’ve just done what we can with the cards we are dealt. I am so grateful for my village."

Health

People rally behind man who walked out on his first date after getting yelled at

"Just because you can handle something doesn't mean you have to."

A man and woman on a bad date.

When going out on a first date, we generally try to give people the benefit of the doubt. However, it can be pretty clear early on when someone just isn’t a right fit. At that point, do we continue on with said date, or do we let politeness be damned and move on with our lives then and there?

For an artist who goes by the name of Solo Dolo, the choice was a no-brainer.

Solo, who regularly posts content about relationships, recalled a recent brunch date he had been on, with a person who asked him to describe his "ideal partner.”

"In my experience, I think people try to fit the mold of what I'm looking for and make themselves seem ideal, and that has led to toxic relationships or just discomfort,” he said in the video. So his response to them was, “I'm looking for someone who is happy with who they are. If it works, it works. If not, that's okay."

@solodolobcyolo Like I’ll just go. Doesn’t matter who. Doesn’t matter when. If you’re doin this, I’m gunna let you do it by yourself lol
♬ original sound - SoloDoloBcYolo

That, apparently, was reason enough for his date to slam the table with their fist and exclaim “NOT EVERYONE IS MANIPULATIVE.”

Immediately, Solo knew this date (and the potential relationship) was “not gonna be effective,” because “if that’s the way you’re gonna express yourself as an adult, in public, nothing good is about to happen.” So once the “tantrum” was over, he politely told his date that he would be leaving. This was all before he was able to order a cup of coffee.

In an interview with PEOPLE, Solo shared that his video was not meant to be mean-spirited, but rather encourage others to act when they see red flags.

"I made the TikTok video not to judge that person but more so to say if you're ever in a situation that you're not comfortable in, just remember you don't have to be there. You just don't. Just because you can handle something doesn't mean you have to, like life is too short. You don't have to be there if you don't want to be," he said.

@solodolobcyolo I think im realizing that there are more people who are kinda disorganized and reactive than those who are organized and proactive (like me lol)
♬ original sound - SoloDoloBcYolo

Viewers unanimously agreed that Solo did in fact make the right decision, and were on board with his stance overall.

“Normalize leaving at the first sign of a red flag,” one person wrote.

Another said, “If they’re yelling at you in a restaurant on a first date, imagine what a nightmare they are in private after a few years when the real conflict arises."

There are plenty of scenarios in which a meh, or even bad date can turn into a worthy romance. But on the flipside, as in this case, when there is a clear, distinctive omen that something’s not right, people have every right to maintain their wellbeing…even if that means removing themselves from a situation entirely. Let’s not keep ourselves stuck in something that doesn’t serve us.

bad first dates, red flags, dating, bumble, hinge, tinder"Living a peaceful life, ironically, is really hard."Photo credit: Canva

As Solo told PEOPLE,, "My favorite thing to say right now is, 'Living a peaceful life, ironically, is really hard.'…It's so intentional. Every day, every moment you're challenged, you have to choose peace. It's really hard."

@bunchesofbeggs/TikTok

This Manager think PTO is for vacation, not "life changing events."

What does it take to be a good boss? You can answer this a bajillion different ways—being a clear communicator, earning employee trust, providing constructive feedback, and fostering a positive and supportive work environment while also being open to feedback and recognizing your team's contributions—but really, it all seems to stem from respecting your employees as fellow human beings.

And part of that means acknowledging that these employees have lives that are, frankly, more important to them than the job, and not penalizing them for it. One manager, and Gen Zer no less, seems to fully understand this basic principle, and folks are applauding her for it.

Elizabeth Beggs, who manages a five-person team for a packaging distribution company in Virginia, recently made a TikTok sharing which time-off requests she “rejects.”You’ll see why “rejects” is in quotes shortly.

One example: when a female rep notified Beggs that she was likely having a miscarriage. After the team member asked how she can file for time off to see to the issue, Beggs immediately responded, “Girl, go to the doctor! We’re not submitting time off for that!”

In Beggs’ mind, PTO is for “vacation,” not medical emergencies. What a concept.

@bunchesofbeggs Edited to clarify- 1. My team is all salary. 2. These examples are not all recent or from my current position. 3. My team works hard and hits thier KPIs above and beyond. Time off is meant to recharge and be used how you need it, not to handle life changing events #mangers #corporate #genzmanagers #sales #vetstocorporate #veterans ♬ original sound - Elizabeth


Beggs went on to explain a couple more situations, like when a parent who was “up all night” with a sick kid. And her last one wasn’t even negative—she had an employee who wanted to work a half-day to do something nice for their anniversary.

“Seriously, if any of these triggered anyone, then you need to evaluate how you run your team as a manager,” she concluded.

By and large, the response to Beggs’ management style has been overwhelmingly positive, and people seem to find it completely refreshing.

“You are not a manager, you’re a LEADER,” one person wrote.

@bunchesofbeggs Everything you do should be to better your team, not to make your life easier #leadership #ownership #corporatelife #veteran #military ♬ original sound - Elizabeth

Another said,“The better you treat your employees, the more loyal they will be and the better work they will put out. Most people do not understand how management works.”

A few noted how this attitude seems to be more present among younger leaders.

One person commented, "millennial manager here. My team members are human first, employees second. Like just go do what you want but get the work done too.”

Another joked that “Boomer managers could NEVER.”

Beggs would later clarify this doesn’t mean she doesn't have clear productivity expectations for her team (who work on salary). Perhaps if she had a team member not making their KPIs (key performance indicator), there would be an additional conversation surrounding time off, but there is still an inherent respect as a fellow human being. Which, to her, means treating bona fide time- off as a way to “recharge and be used how you need it, not to handle life changing events.”

@bunchesofbeggs If you’re planning does not account for people being human- it’s bad planning #genzleaders #armyvet #militaryvet #genz #corporatelife #corporate #manager #timeoff ♬ original sound - Elizabeth

Younger generations might get labeled “lazy” or “entitled,” but they are also the ones fighting to change the status quo, so that we all may be treated less like cogs in the machine, and more like actual human beings. Its leaders like Beggs who show that operating in new ways doesn't compromise productivity, and in fact enhances it. We might not be able to change the global standard overnight, but we certainly aren’t going to get to a better place without leaders who choose to serve their community rather than a bottom line.

Joy

Men who are 30 and over share the 15 life lessons younger guys must learn early

"Don't let people treat you poorly. Not your girlfriend, not your buddy, not your family."

A man in his 50s with some good advice.

It’s impossible for anyone who has reached middle age to look back on their early 20s and not believe they squandered some of their precious resources, whether the vitality of their youth or the seemingly infinite time they thought they had on this earth. But you don’t learn to truly appreciate these things until one day, you want to go to bed at 9 pm, and time has sped up so rapidly that you’re having a hard time catching up.

Countless people have tried to tell younger people to appreciate the vitality of their youth, and by making good decisions at a young age, you’ll be much happier when you get older. However, that advice is usually ignored because most people don’t have the foresight to appreciate the wisdom we accumulate with age. It seems that, sadly, most of us have to learn our lessons the hard way.

For young people out there willing to entertain the idea that they don’t know everything, a group of men who are 30 and over on Reddit shared the lessons that “every guy” should learn early on. To sum it up, they believe that young people should understand that time flies fast and they should always have one eye on their future selves. They should also learn that being a good guy is better than being a hothead and that you are not invincible, no matter how powerful you feel. It’s also important to stand up for yourself and have integrity because your character will follow you wherever you go.

great advice, wisdom, helpful advice, gen x men, gen z men, positive masculinityA man in his 20s upset.via Canva/Photos

Here are 15 lessons men 30 and up think every guy should learn early.

1. Make sure people treat you right

"Don't let people treat you poorly. Not your girlfriend, not your buddy, not your family."

"Absolutely. It's a skill to carry yourself in a way where you are respected. People learn quick who they can talk down on and who not to mess with. If you speak up for yourself, people are more likely to keep their opinions to themselves."

2. You're not young forever (although you may think it)

"You are only young for a period of your life. You are actually 'older' for most of your life so make sure your decisions take that into consideration."

"I didn't feel like an adult until I was 26-28. That's when it really hit me. I feel 26 until I speak to an actual 26-year-old."

"You'll still feel 26 in your 40s and 50s until you try to do physical stuff like you did at that age."

3. Admit your mistakes

"Admit when you make a mistake and learn from it. And don’t try to hide them either. I’ve avoided so much conflict in my adult life by being able to go to someone and say, 'I need you to know I made a mistake, and I’m going to correct it,' or else, 'I messed up, and I need help.' Trying to blame someone else when it was genuinely your fault always causes more problems, and mistakes you try to hide almost always get found out eventually."

"Owning up to your mistakes and finding wisdom in your experiences is about as manly as it gets. Right on, brother."


4. You're not indestructible

"All the little injuries you pile up in your 20s and 30s will haunt you later."

"At 24, I jumped off a two-story house to entertain people at a party. At 40, I feel like someone has taken a sledgehammer to my back. I'm not a detective, but I think these two things are connected."

5. Don't waste your time

"By far, it has to be learning the value of TIME. So many people in this world don't grasp this until it's far too late in life. Don't waste your time doing things you hate, or being around bad people."

Pink Floyd said it best:

"'And then one day you find/ten years have got behind you/no one told you when to run/you missed the starting gun.'" I remember sitting in my car at 25 listening to that line and realizing I had first heard it 10 years earlier. It felt like a blink of an eye. Now I'm coming up on another 10 since that."


- YouTubewww.youtube.com

6. Value kindness

"Be kind, it's its own reward."

"It helps my mental health so much, just letting cars into your queue, saying please and thank you to people who don’t hear it often, talking to elderly people who rarely speak to others etc. Just trying to be a cheerful chill dude makes me very happy, happier than almost any possession I can think of buying."


7. Lift people up

"You’re not that funny when you put other people down. You are more of a man when you lift people up."

"This 100%. I teach middle school students, and I’m always trying to teach this. Also, how it shows way more strength to admit you’re wrong and apologize than lie and never own up to things."

8. Work out

"On a related note, it is a lot easier to not consume 300 calories than it is to burn 300 calories."

"This is the best blanket advice in here. I didn't start working out until I was 32. I was 50lbs overweight and felt like crap. Working out and making it a part of your daily routine has such a massive domino effect over your entire life, physically, mentally, routine, work ethic, literally everything. This should be mandatory for everyone to start at a young age and develop good habits. This coupled with proper eating/cooking habits are paramount."

9. Save for retirement

"Start saving for retirement. I know you've all heard it, but I can't stress how much more money you earn from your savings during your twenties. This is not a drill. Start saving money you don't touch until retirement."

"Compounding interest is very powerful, and it’s at its most powerful over a long period of time. So start young. The S&P 500 averages a 10% yearly return. At that rate, if you can invest $500 per month, then in 30 years, you’ll have over $1 million."


savings, retirement, couple doing bills, responsibility, wisdom, adviceA couple saving money.via Canva/Photos

10. Be a man of your word

"Your integrity is the only thing that can’t be taken from you."

"If you wouldn't want people knowing you said it/ did it don't say it/do it."

11. Don't wait

"The best way to improve your life is for you to improve your life. If you wait for someone or something to happen, it won't. Work today to improve your life in any way that you feel you need it."

"You're absolutely right and it deserves repeating, IT WILL NOT BE EASY, going to the gym sucks, going to school sucks, studying sucks the list is infinite but there's just no way around it. IT WILL NOT BE EASY, if it was, everyone would be doing it."

"No one is coming to save you. Do it yourself."

12. Plenty of fish in the sea

"There are literally millions of women. Why obsess over that ONE?"

"My advice is instead of worrying about women, work on yourself instead. Work on making yourself the happiest version of you, and then you will naturally find someone. Don't chase anyone or waste any time on anyone that's not interested."


breakup, love lost, heartbreak, the one, obsession, love advice, move on, A man and a woman have a fight.via Canva/Photos


13. Stretch

"Connective tissue health is underrated. Most common training injury."

"Flexibility naturally decreases as you age unless you take steps to maintain it. Improving it is hard. It's also crucial for progressing in many, many exercises."

14. Maintain friendships

"Don't burn bridges with people and try your best to maintain friendships."

"For one reason or another, the buddy list shrinks more and more as time goes on."

"I'm in my forties and have definitely had friends that have fallen off the list, but I continue to make friends along the way. I think it might be that I put serious effort into maintaining old relationships and trying to form new ones."

15. Make friends with women

"Make friends with women; And I don’t mean make friends with to have romantic relationships later… like just be platonic friends. Having someone that you can talk to with a different perspective can be so beneficial."

"Second this. Plus, if you're a good friend to a woman, she's likely to introduce you to her friends and vouch for you, which opens up more opportunities for romantic relationships. or more friends."

Pop Culture

Heath Ledger's father shares the late actor's diary used while playing the Joker

The diary is filled with notes, sketches, and references that helped Ledger develop his most iconic role.

Howie/Wikipedia, Wozard/Wikipedia

A photo of Heath Ledger (left) alongside the Joker (right)

We very rarely get to see into an artist’s process. It often feels like great works—be it in music, paintings, or performances—sort of appear out of nowhere. Perfect and fully formed. But in reality, these works are the result of a thousand small decisions, days of preparation, and more often than not, an abundance of failed experiments.

So when we do get to peel back the curtain to see what might have inspired these works that take on a life of their own, that in itself has profound power, since it reminds us that creating something is just as much about commitment as it is about talent.

That is partially why people continue to have such a visceral reaction to seeing excerpts from the late, great Heath Ledger’s diary while preparing for his iconic role of The Joker in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight.

In the video, Ledger’s father, Kim Ledger explains how his son “locked himself in a hotel room for weeks,” preparing for filming. The pages of the journal reveals how the actor was inspired by old school Batman comic book clippings, images of jesters and clowns, and interestingly enough, the character Alex in A Clockwork Orange.

heath ledger, heath ledger diary, heath ledger joker, the joker, batman, the dark knightA page that beings with "It's simple. Kill the Batman." preview.redd.it

There’s even an image of a hyena, which seems like a clear reference for his Joker’s signature cackle.

- YouTubewww.youtube.com

There is, of course, quite a bit of dark, disturbing things scribblings in there, like listing “blind babies” and “AIDS” under “things that make me laugh,” all of which leaves clue as to how Ledger was able to authentically drop into a chaotic and twisted mind.

A page from Heath Ledger's diary while in prep for The Dark Knightpreview.redd.it

The diary first appears in the 2012 documentary series Too Young to Die, which not only follows Ledger’s untimely death, along with other greats like Phillip Seymour Hoffman and Kurt Cobain. But clips of it have recently been resurfacing online, and with it a renewed appreciation for how devoted Ledger was to his craft.

“Remarkable lengths he went to to get his character performance just right and take it to the next level.

“His portrayal of the Joker was disturbing and brilliant. One of the best performances of all time. Truly legendary. The diary is unsettling, as is the role of the joker. The mind space he might have been in to play such a dark character is hard to think about. The award he received for his performance was well deserved. Such a talented actor, gone too soon.”

“He disappeared so well into the character. It’s a shame it took such a large toll on his mental health. Hope he knows he’s still loved and admired. RIP Heath.”

Ledger passed away on January 22, 2008, before The Dark Knight was released, due to an accidental overdose of prescription medications. It was a death that shocked fans (keep in mind he was practically the first Hollywood star to pass away publicly in the internet age) and there were many speculations that embodying Joker in such an intense way helped create his tragic ending. While that theory could seem possible, given some of the details in Ledger’s diary, his family has since rebuked any indications that his mental health was negatively impacted by it.

Plus, this kind of work is very normal for actors, especially when trying to find their way through some pretty dark psyches. For example, Rosamund Pike previously shared how she sliced open a pig at a butcher shop for her role in Gone Girl. If you’ve seen it, you know which scene we’re referring to.

One of the saddest things to come of Ledger’s passing is that he wouldn’t get to witness the incredible appreciation that would come for his hard work. Not only did it earn him a posthumous Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, but it would become a role that people continue to be inspired by, even now. When an artist truly pours themselves into their art, as he clearly did, it changes the world.