Mental Health Resources for the LGBTQ Community
In the past few days, I came across a couple of resources targeted toward the LGBTQ community, and I wanted to share them here.
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The Positive Impacts of Social Media
This is the world we live in. Not one where teens would be fine if only they didn’t have social media, but one where teens take to social media to get information about mental health and other issues that they can’t talk to anyone else about. Getting rid of social media for minors will leave a void similar to the one I had growing up, where no one I knew talked about abuse or mental health issues, so I assumed I was the only one dealing with it.
That’s not a better world. I think a world where minors can access information provided by advocates who educate themselves about the facts and share their own lived experiences is invaluable. That’s what following these accounts can provide.
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Shared Links (weekly) Nov. 19, 2023
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The case for inviting everyone to everything– In a time when loneliness is more pervasive than ever, why not extend an invitation?
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Bringing Hope and Suicide Prevention Resources to Veterans and Military Members
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Navigating the Depths: A Personal Journey into Black Men’s Mental Health and the Power of Therapy
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Feeling Lonely Should Inspire Us to Connect, But Often It Does the Opposite
For myself, and all of you, remember that feeling of loneliness is there for a reason, because we are meant to be connected to other people. Generally speaking, all those people we know and should connect with, also need the same thing. Many of them might even be struggling with their own internal negative thoughts too, and could use someone to reach out to them. If we all sit around convinced that no one wants to connect with us, eventually we’ll all be lonely, which seems like something we are headed toward. The solution is for each of us to take a step toward connection when we can.
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988 Hotline Struggling with Growing Pains?
What if the operators on the line do get the necessary training and we make all the improvements we can make as we learn how to do this better, and there is just no system to hand the caller off to? Because I feel like that might be the case for some callers. The call is a door to care, but is the follow-up care available?
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Sharing – How I Got Better at Sharing My Story
They can’t go down to the local community college and sign up for a class where they can practice explaining all of the complexities of their mental health in simple terms. They’re experimenting with what works, what is comfortable, what is confusing, etc. Give them some space to do that and know that when they are still at this uncomfortable level they trust you to be someone they want to talk to.
Don’t ruin it for them by being dismissive or not listening. They need you to listen and they need practice in telling their stories. Be the same place for that.
