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LGBTQ+ Mental Health

  • Writer: Vanessa Mukoo
    Vanessa Mukoo
  • Jun 10, 2022
  • 2 min read

“Love him and let him love you. Do you think anything else under heaven really matters?” – James Baldwin

image source: Unsplash

Happiest Pride Month to the LGBTQ+ community and allies! Pride month is celebrated every year in June in order to applaud the LGBTQ+ community and honour the LGBTQ+ icons involved in the Stonewall Riots. (Read more about it here.)


As the world celebrates pride month, it does invite hateful or homophobic comments and behaviours along. Many homophobic people tend to refer to homosexuality as a “mental illness.” This notion is not only insanely wrong but it violates the right for every person to live freely as themselves and harms an LGBTQ-identifying person’s mental health. This belief was widely held decades ago, due to excessive heteronormativity and still exists to this day.


Mental illnesses are serious conditions that severely affect the brain and behaviour. Associating homosexuality with a mental illness is epically ignorant and homophobic. Being attracted to the same sex does not signify that a person is not mentally stable, rather, it is just a case of individual differences and preferences among the human population.


Risk factors for developing a mental illness among LGBTQ people:

  • The process of coming out can be incredibly stressful for some people and may cause anxiety or panic attacks

  • The fear of rejection by close ones upon coming out

  • Suicidal ideation due to internalised or external homophobia

  • Homelessness

  • Substance abuse

A lack of mental healthcare for LGBTQ+ people is also a critical issue in the community. Every LGBTQ-identifying person has unique struggles and often don’t end up receiving the help that they need. There isn’t much research regarding LGBTQ+ people in India where many people already frown upon same-sex relationships and any conversation regarding mental health issues. A report by Sage Journals states that “the LGBTQIA+ community was identified as one of the 12 groups least represented in health equity research in India.” Social stigma was one of the main causes of suicide reports among LGBTQ+ people in India.


What can you do to help support the LGBTQ+ community?


Constant discrimination, lack of support, and stigma can wear a person’s mental health down. This is especially common among the LGBTQ+ community thus, making them prone to developing trauma and anxiety disorders. Below are a few ways you can help to support the community:


  • Spread awareness. A lack of awareness about sexuality and gender identities leads to countless misinterpretations about the LGBTQ+ community.


  • Fight for their rights. A lot of people in the community don’t get to voice their opinions due to a lack of resources. Therefore, it’s important to help them gain a stance in any which way we can.


  • Dismiss homophobia. There isn’t a shortage of comments and behaviours that the LGBTQ+ community faces that are purely driven by hatred and homophobia. Try to intervene and dismiss it if you truly care about human rights.


  • Respecting people’s preferred pronouns is a way of showing your support for the community and helps them feel valid.


  • Offering a safe space to talk about their struggles is a great way to help ease their anxiety and stress.









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