Stigma/Mental Health
What is LGBTQ+ health stigma?
LGBTQ+ health stigma is prejudice and negative attitudes towards those with diseases in high rates in the LGBTQ+ community such as HIV and Monkeypox. This stigma can make those with HIV and Monkeypox feel ashamed or depressed.
Why does LGBTQ+ health stigma exist?
This stigma is often based in discrimination because homophobia in society causes people to look down upon those with diseases found in high rates in the LGBTQ+ community. However, these diseases often occur in high rates in the LGBTQ+ community in the first place because of society ignoring LGBTQ+ health issues. Stigma also exists because these diseases are transferred from sex.
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Another major reason for LGBTQ+ health stigma is misinformation and fear from misinformation. For example, many people still think that HIV is a death sentence because of the lack of treatments available in the 1980's, but this absolutely isn't the case today because of modern medicine. Many people also have misconceptions about how HIV actually spreads. There is a lack of good education about diseases such as HIV and Monkeypox in terms of how they spread and how they can be treated today which is a big contributor to the stigma.
How can we stop LGBTQ+ health stigma?
First, it is important to advocate for better education on diseases such as HIV and Monkeypox to prevent misinformation and fear from spreading. If you hear someone saying something incorrect about HIV/AIDS or Monkeypox, you should correct them. We should also work to stop making those with HIV or Monkeypox feel ashamed. We should normalize talking about these diseases and how they spread and how to treat them.
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The CDC has a great website with a list of scenarios to prevent HIV stigma here:
https://www.cdc.gov/stophivtogether/hiv-stigma/stigma-scenarios.html
Where can I access mental health resources?
Sadly many LGBTQ+ youth experience mental illness because of the effects of stigma, homophobia, or bullying. If you are experiencing mental illness you are not alone and there are a lot of resources to get the help you need.
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The Trevor Project has a 24/7 hotline for texts and calls for LGBTQ+ youth in need here:
The phone number is: 1-866-488-7386
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If your school has a counselor, you could reach out to them. There are also many incredible LGBTQ+ community centers across the US to support LGBTQ+ youth such as the Center on Halsted in Chicago so you can look online and see if there is one near you.
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If you are thinking about harming yourself call 911 immediately
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Preventing bullying of LGBTQ+ youth
Bullying of LGBTQ+ youth is sadly very common. Schools, our communities, and society as a whole needs to work to prevent this bullying because it is incredibly damaging. We need to create safe spaces for kids to express themselves in school. We also need to spread messages of kindness and acceptance of all times of sexual orientation and gender identity. Enforcing rules against bullying is also very important and holding kids accountable and educating them on why bullying and homophobia is wrong.
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You can find more resources here: https://www.stopbullying.gov/bullying/lgbtq
Supporting LGBTQ+ elders
While the main focus of our initiative is advocating for LGBTQ+ youth, we have also partnered with the RetireGuide to help spread awareness about health care in the LGBTQ+ Seniors Community. They have put together a very informative guide for LGBTQ+ seniors found here: https://www.retireguide.com/guides/lgbtq-elder-health-care/