About LGBTQIA+ and Mental Health
Identifying as LGBTQIA+ means that we may be lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, intersex or asexual. We can also define our sexuality and gender in other ways. You can find more information at www.stonewall.org.uk
Any of us can have periods in our lives where we experience mental health issues. Identifying as LGBTQIA+ does not cause you to have mental health issues, but wider factors can sometimes mean that you may experience issues such as low self-esteem; depression; anxiety; eating problems; drug and alcohol misuse; self-harm and other mental health problems.
The wider factors that impact mental health could be caused by experiences relating to homophobia, biphobia or transphobia; discrimination; stigma; if coming out was difficult; feeling socially isolated, excluded or rejected (this list is not exhaustive).
The good news is that there are many positives to embracing your LGBTQIA+ identity including huge benefits to your wellbeing. You may notice increasing confidence; better relationships; a sense of belonging to part of a community; opportunity and freedom to express and accept yourself; greater resilience.
Mental and Emotional Health Support
RightMind are here for anyone that is experienced difficulties with mental and emotional health and we understand that there can sometimes be challenges in both finding the right support and taking steps to begin therapy.
Remember that different things work for different people – there is no ‘one size fits all’ approach to the right support, or what might help with your specific needs for improving your wellbeing.
If you are struggling, here are some suggestions that might help you to begin improving how you feel:
- Talk about how you feel to a trusted friend or family member. This can feel really difficult but many people feel better after talking through what they are struggling with.
- Self-care can significantly help us improve our mental and emotional health and wellbeing. Different things work for different people, so you may need to experiment a bit before you find the right self care rituals for you. Internalised discrimination (the messages we give ourselves after we have experienced any kind of discrimination including homophobia, biphobia or transphobia) can significantly impact things like self-esteem, confidence and social anxiety. Prioritising yourself and developing a regular self-care routine can really help to improve all of the above. You could try volunteering, joining a group of likeminded people, look at your sleep patterns and diet and see if there is room for improvement, think about what physical activity you enjoy and if you are making time to do this regularly, or perhaps try new things. There are many more ways to build in a self-care routine that works for you.
- Try and make community connections. This might be others identifying as LGBTQIA+ or others who are struggling with similar mental and emotional health issues. Peer support can be found through online communities. Some employers and universities offer mentoring schemes. Here are some links that might help: www.consortium.lgbt www.stonewall.org.uk www.fflag.org.uk
- Try counselling or psychotherapy. You can do this privately, by a GP referral or by contacting a charity who may be able to offer support. Contact us for more details of private support by emailing contact@rightmind.co.uk
If you require immediate support, please contact Samaritans by calling 116 123 or visits www.Samaritans.org
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