A Community Based Organization That Operates A Project For Lesbian And Gay Youth

Appleby, G A., & Anastas, J.W. (1998). Not just a passing phase: Social work with gay, lesbian and bisexual people (pp. 3–43, 44-75). New York: Columbia University Press.

Neveah is currently placed at a Residential Treatment Center (RTC) due to her mental health history. Additionally, Neveah’s treatment is covered by private medical insurance. Neveah’s father has insurance through his place of employment that covers mental health services, which allows her to be placed at the center. Neveah completes online school at the center, but will transition to her previous public school after treatment. Education and school policies will affect Neveah as she transitions back to a public school. Lastly, Neveah is involved in a Pentecostal institution. Her father and stepmother identify as Pentecostal and seek guidance as well as mental health services from the institution. Neveah would benefit from engagement with an LGBT youth support group. The support group may provide Neveah with acceptance and support regarding her sexual orientation. Currently, she is not receiving this acceptance from her father and stepmother and this is an important aspect of her developmental

The Lesbian, Gay, Bi, and Transgendered (LGBT) youth population is one of the most vulnerable groups in our community. Being gay does not lead to risky behaviors or bad decision making, rather, societal stigma and discrimination can lead LGBT youth to seek emotional outlets. Today’s society has improved immensely towards the LGBT community, although it has not always been this way. Society can affect a person in shocking ways, influencing one’s unhealthy and unsafe physical and mental behaviors. This current vulnerable population deserves a voice and the simplicity of someone listening to them in order for both sides, accepting and non-accepting, to find a common ground and settle the violence.

Another area that demands acceptance towards sexual orientation is by parents. The average American has heard about an instance where someone “came out of the closet.” Although, most people don’t think about what happens after they tell their parents the truth about their sexuality. For millions of teens across America, their situation results in either running away or being kicked out. According to the TrueColorsFund website, homelessness is experienced by over 1.5 million youth a year, and up to 40% are LGBT. Considering the LGBT community is far smaller than 40% of the entire youth population, a problem is obviously occurring. To extend, the leading cause of homelessness is family disputes over the child’s sexuality (Durso and Gates 4). When a child tells their parents, a negative reaction is expected. In many cases, though, the parents overreact and kick them out because they think abandonment will change their mind and the child will come crawling back. Not accepting their child surrenders them to possibly years on the streets, exposing them to drugs, rape, and prostitution. When their parent’s rejection combines with the common mental health issues of LGBT teens, suicide rates skyrocket. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Nearly one-third (29%) of LGB youth had attempted suicide at least once in the prior year compared to 6% of

Society’s view of the LGBTQ population has changed dramatically over time. Until 1973, the American Psychological Association had considered homosexuality to be a mental disorder (Silvestre, Beatty, & Friedman, 2013). Today, many LGBTQ couples are getting married and raising children. Although these individuals are receiving more legal benefits, they still must struggle with the stigma that society has associated with these gender and sexual identities (Hequembourg & Dearing, 2013). This stigma has contributed to a variety of issues for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered, and queer or questioning individuals. Although little research has been done on LGBTQ families and substance abuse, studies have shown that there are high rates of substance abuse for individuals who are of sexual minorities (McCabe, West, Hughes, & Boyd, 2013; Senreich, 2009; Silvestre, Beatty, & Friedman, 2013). In addition to high rates of substance abuse for LGBTQ individuals, many problems exist for those in families with LGBTQ members. Youth may have a

The article "Gay Teens Are at Risk," was written by Paula Schleis and Kim Hone-McMahan and was published in 2004 in Teens at Risk. This article describes how society is forcing the adolescents in the LGBT community into depression and causing them to attempt suicide. According to the article, gay teens risk loosing friends and loved ones if they 'come out of the closet' and thus either try to fruitlessly hide their sexuality or attempt suicide. Additionally, the article states that one-third of teen suicides are committed by homosexuals because of homophobia. With this article's use of pathos and heart-string-pulling language gain empathy and attention from their readers. Though neither authors have a personal background or connection to the

In response to the despairing LGBT kids who get bullied and harrassed in high school, Dan and Terry share their personal experiences and harsh memories when coming out to their friends and family. The YouTube video intendeds to send a message of hope for teenagers struggling with their sexual identity and telling them that life will get better. Dan tells us about his Catholic family background and how there wasn’t any LGBT kids at his school who constantly bullied him for liking musicals. Terry shares a more negative childhood with ‘kids beating him up, throwing him against walls, lockers, windows, stuffing him into bathroom stalls, and scratching his car.” School administrators were not very supportive to address these issues either. But, thankfully, Terry gives a positive note that life got better for him after high school and Dan added that “however bad it is now, it gets better and it can get great, and awesome, but you have to tough this period out and live your life so your around for it to get better.”

It has been made aware that a lot of individuals are struggling to come out to their families, or with struggling with gender issues that often lead to them killing themselves for not being accepted. This community often works with individuals within a group setting, to recognize the issues that they are experiencing to get advice on how to handle their issues or the emotions they are dealing with. Engaging with individuals of the LGBT community generally display a point of group facilitators with established values (Corey et al., 2010). Taking on this population will call for working with adults and children who are dealing judgments on being who they really are. It is important as a counselor to be prepared to protect the client in any way possible to lay those criticisms to rest and help clients of this group to be more comfortable in their own

Sexual orientation is an enduring emotional, romantic, or sexual attraction that a person feels toward men, women, or toward both. Furthermore, sexual orientation is not the same as sexual activities. The grueling lifelong process of coming out involves recognizing, accepting, expressing, and sharing one’s sexual orientation with oneself and others. Moreover, research suggests that coming out of the gay ethnic minority person may be especially difficult because the individual may have to face two sources of prejudice and oppression. Furthermore, the client should consider the following before coming out. First the client has to understand own feelings about being gay, be well informed about homosexuality, and that the decision should be his/hers.

“People who have gone through conversion therapy face 8.9 times the rates of suicide ideation, face depression at 5.9 times the rate of their peers and are three times more likely to use illegal drugs and be at high risk for sexually transmitted infections.”(Stafford), even though it isn’t publically discussed to avoid controversies and public argument of the veil of abuse and homophobia throughout the United States for the LGBT community, the effects that these anti-gay therapy programs have on the youth and overall population of those in these camps is cold-hearted abuse and negligence that is plain out ignored no matter the situation. “In a poll by the Pew Research Center, roughly one-third of LGBT respondents said they had been physically threatened or attacked, while 40 percent said they had been rejected by a friend or family member because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.”, many ex-patients are encountered with rejection and hesitance from the society around them, intensifying the feelings of rejection from before and during their time in the ex-gay therapy

“Coming out” is a means of identifying one’s sexual orientation as gay, lesbian, or bisexual. At its most basic, “coming out of the closet,” means being honest with those around you—friends, family, colleagues, and so forth—about your sexual orientation, about whom you are. It also means acknowledging one’s sexual orientation to self. Such disclosure is an ongoing, lifelong process rather than a one-time event. New personal, social, and professional situations require gay men and lesbians to make decisions about the degree to which they can be open about their sexual orientation (Morrow, 1996).

Research has found that for LGBTQ youth one of the most important task is coming out to others which is a process that “…often involves acknowledgement of one’s sexual orientation or gender identity…grappling with implications for family relationships, peers, relationships and dating, initial life-planning steps, and ensuring school and community-based safety, security, and well-being” (Weber & Poster, 2010, p.1). These implications highlight the importance of maintaining an open and accepting attitude towards my work with Mary to ensure that I do not pressure her to come out to her parents when she unready to do so. I must work to ensure that I empower Mary and uphold her right to self-determinate in her decision to come out to her family. Because coming out to one’s family and friends is a very complex, scary, and tedious process I need to be conscientious that there are many micro, mezzo, and macro factors that will influence when, how, and even if, Mary will come out to her family as Asexual and questioning her gender identity.

Gays in today’s society face many problems not only with the Media’s eyes, but also on college campuses. Young adults who self-identify as lesbian, gay or bisexual experience major stresses in managing their sexual orientation.

There is a discernible relation between parental acceptance and alcohol or other drug use among members of the LGBTs community. According to a study by Padilla, Crisp and Rew (2010), more than 65% of adolescents of the LGBTs community reported having used alcohol and illegal drugs in the past 30 days. According to these authors, these individuals face the same developmental challenges as heterosexual adolescents but have the added stress of acceptance or rejection from their family members especially parents. Coming out is considered a stressful ordeal for thee adolescents. This is especially complicated

Gabriel Rotello in his article “Calling All Parents,” underscores this need for parental love by stating that almost all lesbian and gay teens go through a terrible, lonely stage when they feel they have no one to turn to, not even their own family members - sometimes especially not their own family members. It’s a phase that can leave lasting psychological damage even to the vast majority who survive it (112). Gay children are at extremely high risk for anxiety, confusion, despair, and, yes, some even contemplate suicide. In fact, according to a recent study published in the May 1999 issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, gay and lesbian youth “were 3.4 times as likely to have attempted suicide than straight youth.” (487)