Counting Ourselves is the first comprehensive national survey of the health and wellbeing of trans and non-binary people living in Aotearoa New Zealand and was conducted from 21 June till 30 September 2018.

Key Findings

1. High levels of participants wanting but not being able to access gender-affirming healthcare.
2. Cost was the most commonly reported barrier for all surgeries, and few participants had been able to access these through the public health system.
3. Over a third (36%) of participants had avoided seeing a doctor because they were worried about disrespect or mistreatment as a trans or non-binary person, including 20% reporting this in the last 12 months.
4. Five out of every seven participants aged 15 and older (71%) reported high or very high psychological distress, compared with only 8% of the general population in Aotearoa New Zealand.
5. More than half of the participants (56%) had seriously thought about attempting suicide in the last 12 months.
6. Participants’ rate of cannabis use in the last year (38%) was more than three times that of the general population (12%).
7. More than one in five (21%) school student participants were bullied at school at least once a week, much higher than the general population (5%).
8. Two-thirds of participants (67%) had experienced discrimination at some point.
9. Almost a third of participants (32%) reported someone had had sex with them against their will since they were 13.
10. Five out of six participants (83%) did not have the correct gender marker on their New Zealand birth certificate.