Sharing – The broken pipeline of mental healthcare for LGBTQ teenagers

Another group that struggles to get mental healthcare:

Despite strong demand, 44% of LGBTQ youth who want mental healthcare say they cannot access it.

https://www.fiercehealthcare.com/providers/broken-pipeline-mental-healthcare-lgbtq-teenagers

We have to be honest about the current political climate. Bullying of LGBTQ teens is rampant, and advertising that you are a therapist who provides affirming care is risky. Research grants focused on LGBTQ mental health are being cut, mental healthcare budgets for schools are being cut, and when you can find resources, waitlists are long.

We talk a lot as a society about youth mental health, but our actions speak much louder, and the message they send is that we only really care about the mental health care of certain kids. Because if we cared about the mental health of all kids, we’d make different choices about making healthcare available and eliminating the actions that harm teens’ mental health.