Being A Homosexual Male Or Female?

The mental health of individuals in the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered) community is something that is a serious problem. For most of the history of the United States and many different parts of the world LGBT people faced much persecution and in some cases even death. This constant fear of discovery and the pressure that one feels on oneself when “in the closet” can lead to major mental distress. Research has shown that people who identify as LGBT are twice as likely to develop lifetime mood and anxiety disorders (Bostwick 468). This is extremely noticeable the past couple years in the suicides of bullied teens on the basis of sexual identity and expression. The stigma on simply being perceived as LGBT is strong enough to

Ryan, Caitlin Ryan; Russell, Stephen, T.; Huebner, David; Diaz, Rafael; Sanchez, Jorge, 2010, Family Acceptance in Adolescence and the Health of LGBT young Adults, Journal of Child and Adolescence Psychiatric Nursing, Volume 23, pp. 205-213

Support groups will help lower the risk of suicide. (Eisenberg & Resnick, 2006) Having parental support will tremendously help with the LGBT youth's self-confidence. The primary step for this recommendation is to make sure there is counselling when needed. Teachers and parents can help counsel the teen with all the support they can give. (Eisenberg & Resnick, 2006) This approach draws from the social-cultural perspective. Having a family connection helps with lowering the risk of suicide; the more your family supports you, the less you think of suicide. (Eisenberg & Resnick, 2006) It'll become easier to push aside the bullying as well when they feel rejected at their school. (Husted,

Gay teenagers are a large portion of teens taking their lives by suicide this source states that 30 to 40% of gay boy and 20% of gay girls have attempted suicide. This group of teens feel isolated, lonely and reminded that

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.

The teen years can often times be very difficult in general, but for homosexual teens their problems can turn out to be more than they can deal with. Being gay for many teens is something that they can not live with because society, most of the time, says that homosexuality is wrong. These teens usually have no one to go to with his or her problems for fear of being taunted or harassed. Also, schools rarely have groups for gay students to go to for help and parents are often unaware of what their children are going through. With no place to go and no one to help them, homosexual teens can feel alienated which may force them think of more harmful ways of dealing with their problems, so at times gay teens may turn to suicide rather than

The purpose of this essay is to give a clear understanding of gay and lesbian families. This essay will discuss relative information and problems of this client group focusing on the demographic, history, polices, issues faced by the group as well as relevant support groups and programs available. This essay will discuss these topics by drawing on existing published scholarly literature and relevant, credible published sources. The second part of this essay will be a reflection of an event that relates to the LGBTIQA Community. This reflection will discuss the event as well as thoughts and feeling of a participant in the event. For the purpose of this essay Gay and lesbian will be defined as “A person who is attracted primarily to members of the same sex. Although it can be used for any sex e.g. gay man, gay woman, gay person, “lesbian” is sometimes the preferred term for women who are attracted to women.” ("LGBT Terms and Definitions | International Spectrum", 2016).

Classrooms, consisting of 9th-through-12th graders from racially and ethnically diverse backgrounds, were randomly sampled to complete the Boston Youth Survey. The correlation research study excluded schools that served adults, previously incarcerated students, suspended students, and severely disabled students to minimize introduction of confounding variables. Participants in the Boston Youth Survey (BYS) were asked specifically with regards to their individual-level sexual orientation and suicidal ideation and attempts among other questions. Of the 2725 individuals sampled, 1878 completed the survey and were asked, on the sexual orientation item in the BYS questionnaire, to identify themselves with 1 of 6 categories that best described themselves: (1) completely heterosexual, (2) mostly heterosexual, (3) bisexual, (4) mostly homosexual, (5) completely homosexual (i.e., gay or lesbian), or (6) not sure. Respondents were then asked explicitly "Have you seriously considered attempting suicide?" and "Have you actually attempted suicide? [within the 12 months preceding survey administration]" with yes and no response options for those questions (Duncan & Hatzenbuehler, 2014). To test their hypothesis, researchers then obtained LGBT hate crimes data with help from the Boston Police Department Community Disorders Unit and linked the community information to

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

Adolescents in general are often faced with many obstacles throughout their teenage years however; when homosexuality is in the equation this can make issues more complex. Adolescent who do not fit the “norm” because they are questioning their sexuality; they often experience discrimination, substance abuse, higher rates of suicide and victimization. As a result this group is considered to be a high risk population. When communities lack Gay- Straight Alliances also known as GSA adolescents are often shunned and are forced to hide their sexual orientation in social isolation. Increasing GSA support groups will help LBGTQ youths develop a positive self-image.

It can be very difficult for LGBTQ children to be open about their sexuality or gender orientation, especially if they do not receive support from the ones who are supposed to love them no matter what. Parents positively influence the health of their LGBTQ children by providing support an encouragement. Children should be able to talk to their parents about their issues and receive beneficial advice and support. Parents’ influence on the health of lesbian, gay, and bisexual teens: What parents and families should know explained that parents who support their LGBTQ children decrease the risk of the children becoming depressed, abusing drugs or alcohol, and committing suicide(Centers for Disease Control). Therefore, I believe that parents of LGBTQ youth can have a significant impact on the health of their children. As a country, we must encourage each other to accept people for who they are. It is imperative that this acceptance beings in the home and at

Due to young people’s inability to find support in their own communities, many attempt suicide. In a Vocativ article written in March 2015, the staff looked at the attempted suicide statistics of the United States, including sections broken down into throughout the United States, gay and lesbian people, and transgender and gender non-conforming people. Those sections, respectively, are 4.6%, 20%, and 41%. 41% of transgender people report attempting suicide at some point in their lifetimes; furthermore, that number may be even higher; either of those facts - transgender or have attempted suicide - can be difficult to admit, even in an anonymous survey. In addition, 45% of transgender people ages 18-24 reported that they had attempted suicide,

Nearly 26 per cent of GLBT youth are forced to leave their homes due to disputes concerning sexual orientation. This leaves the youth feeling isolated and unaccepted by the family. Often, teens believe running away is the only option. It makes teens feel like they have some control of their situation (Quinn, 2002). If GLBT teens seek refuge in a shelter will they meet the same discrimination and rejection they initially were trying to escape? Counselors at shelters need to be prepared to protect, and not perpetuate, these GLBT teens from further victimization.

If a teen is having feelings that he might be gay and is trying to cope with those feelings, they see that they will have to deal with the society's hostile attitudes about homosexuals. (Nardo, 65) Parents often hope and pray that their child will grow up to be "normal". This does not always happen and causes frustration in the family.(Bender, 199) If a

Many gay youths feel guilty about their sexuality and painfully different from their peers; they worry about the response from their families, friends, and teachers. Some teens have to go to school in a hostile environment and some encounter shame, social isolation and even bullying and cyber bullying on a routine basis. If a teen is feeling rejected or not supported by her family, she is far more likely to have these conditions. This does not mean, however, that LGBT identity itself is the cause of these challenges. These feelings are mainly due to bias, discrimination, and how they are treated in social environments.