A Glimpse at Mental Health in the LGBTQ+ Community

We all have our highs and lows in life. We all experience joy and pain. We tend to talk about the good and leave out the fact that we are struggling behind closed doors. When someone asks “how are you doing?” do we often answer truthfully? What would the world look like if the humans that surround us knew the deepest parts of our journey through life? 

Belonging to a group, such as the LGBTQ+ community can be a strength through building strong bonds and associations, but the identity itself can also coincide with challenges. Nearly 4.5% of the U.S. population identifies as lesbian, gay or bisexual and of that 4.5%, over 39% reported struggling with their mental health (1). If we break this down into numbers based on population, that’s almost 5.8 million humans (1)! What does that mean for us? We are not alone when it comes to our mental health journey, but sometimes it can really feel that way. 

Looking within the LGBTQ+ community, bisexual and transgender humans typically experience the highest rates of mental health concerns (1). 38% of transgender humans have experienced slurs directed at them and 28% have experienced offensive comments based on their gender identity or sexual orientation (2). Studies also show that LGBTQ+ individuals face significant health disparities, which are often linked to societal discrimination and denial of civil and human rights. Of the transgender humans surveyed, 22% of them have avoided doctors and health care because they felt they would be discriminated against and 27% have been denied needed health care outright, along with 8% of LGBTQ+ individuals (6). 

Further, the LGBTQ+ youth are at an even more increased risk of mental health! 45% of LGBTQ+ youth considered attempting suicide (5). Nearly 1 in 5 transgender and nonbinary youth attempted suicide and BIPOC LGBTQ+ youth reported higher rates than their white peers (5). 60% of these LGBTQ+ youth who wanted to seek out mental health care were not able to get it (5). The good news is that the study found that LGBTQ+ youth who live in a community or household accepting of them reported lower rates of attempting suicide, so be the good the world needs!

Many organizations are fighting against the stigma that surrounds mental health. Check out some of our favorite mental health organizations!

Mental Health Resources For LGBTQ+ Communities (provided by Mental Health America)

Sources: (1) Mental Health America, (2) NPR and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, (3) Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, (4)National Alliance on Mental Illness, (5)The Trevor Project, (6) National Women’s Law Center