APA Blogs
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Five Ways to Support LGBTQ+ Mental Health
Family and friends can play a valuable role in supporting the mental health and well-being of LGBTQ+ individuals. LGBTQ+ individuals are more likely than others to experience mental health challenges.
Among LGBTQ+ Adults, Mental Health Improves with Age
Many years of research have identified health and mental health disparities among LGBTQ+ individuals, showing they experience higher rates of mental health problems compared to the heterosexual, cisgender population. A recent APA national poll found that LGBTQ+ adults are more likely than adults overall to be anxious about a number of current issues, including gun violence, climate change and the future of reproductive rights. They are twice as likely (62% vs 31%) to be anxious about the future of LGBTQ+ rights.
“CURED” Documentary: What It’s Like to Participate in a Chronicle of Psychiatry’s Past
- By Saul Levin, M.D., M.P.A., FRCP-E, FRCPsych
At the 1972 APA Annual Meeting, in Dallas, Texas, a psychiatrist identified only as “Dr. H. Anonymous,” who had been stigmatized and lost his job because of his sexual orientation, offered a masked protest during a session devoted to psychiatry’s relationship with homosexuality. Joined on the panel (chaired by Judd Marmor, M.D.) by the organizer/activists Barbara Gittings and Frank Kameny, the psychiatrist was later revealed to be Dr. John Fryer. This event that was a watershed moment both for psychiatry and the LGBTQ community, and eventually led to the removal of homosexuality from the DSM in 1973.
LGBTQ Youth Face Mental Health Challenges: Social Support and Safe Spaces Make a Difference
More than four in 10 LGBTQ youth seriously considered suicide in the past year, according to The Trevor Project’s third annual survey out last May. Meanwhile, nearly half (46%) of LGBTQ youth reported wanting psychological or emotional counseling from a mental health professional but were unable to receive it in.
The ‘Q’ in LGBTQ: Queer/Questioning
Most people are familiar with the term LGBT—lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. The acronym increasingly includes the letter Q, LGBTQ, referring to queer and/or questioning individuals. The terms queer and questioning are important because they encompass a larger number of individuals who identify as having same-sex attraction and behaviors.