NAMI Mercer County

Families Meeting the Challenge of Mental Illness

Pride Month

Pride & Prejudice

By

Bella Santulli, NAMI Intern

As we head into June, it is crucial to reconigize the historical significance of this month for the LGBTQIA+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, plus) community. Without Stonewall (June 1969) or Marsha P. Johnson, a black trans woman who threw the first brick, the LGBTQIA+ community would not have the same rights today. That being said, the lack of rights within the queer community along with confronting discrimination, risks to physical health, and lack of comapssion & care dignifes the high rate in which queer people experience mental health conditions. 

Members of the LGBTQ+ community are more than twice as likely as heterosexual people to experience a mental health condition in their lifetime, according to the American Psychiatric Association. This isn’t because queerness itself is a problem—it’s because of how society often responds to it.
Discrimination, rejection, and social stigma continue to be daily realities for many queer individuals. From family rejection and religious trauma to school bullying, workplace bias, and underrepresentation in healthcare systems, LGBTQIA+ people are often left feeling unseen, unsafe, and unsupported. These stressors can contribute to higher rates of:

  • Anxiety and Depression
  • PTSD
  • Substance use disorders
  • Suicidal ideation and attempts

Mental Health of America studies convey that forty-eight percent of transgender adults report that they have considered suicide in the last year, compared to 4 percent of the overall US population. Additionally, in a survey of LGBTQ+ people, more than half of all respondents reported that they have faced cases of providers denying care, using harsh language, or blaming the patient’s sexual orientation or gender identity as the cause for an illness. Fear of discrimination may lead some people to conceal their sexual orientation or gender identity from providers or avoid seeking care altogether.
When we talk about queer mental health, we can’t ignore intersectionality—the way systems of power overlap and intensify for those who are both queer and BIPOC. It’s not just one layer of identity; it’s a web of lived experience that shapes how people move through the world. For queer BIPOC individuals, the mental health toll isn’t just about sexuality or race in isolation—it’s about how they collide. That’s why affirming, accessible, and culturally aware mental health care isn’t optional. It’s needed. But seeking support isn’t always easy. Many LGBTQIA+ individuals report:

  • Lack of culturally competent providers
  • Fear of discrimination or being outed in clinical settings
  • Limited access to affordable care, especially for trans and nonbinary people
  • Mistrust of medical systems, often rooted in past harm

These barriers leave many feeling that their identities are misunderstood or pathologized, rather than affirmed and supported. Nonetheless, mental health care should be a space for healing, not another site of erasure. Whether through affirming therapy, queer support groups, chosen family, creative expression, or simply existing authentically, visibility in the queer mental health space becomes an act of healing and a reminder that sentiments and experiences deserve to be seen, supported, and celebrated.

How You Can Help

  • Listen without judgment when queer friends and loved ones talk about their mental health.
  • Support LGBTQIA+ mental health organizations, like The Trevor Project, Trans Lifeline, or National Queer & Trans Therapists of Color Network, Mindout, etc. 
  • Educate yourself on how systems of oppression affect mental health. 
  • For more educational resources, check out the toolkit, “Mental Health and the LGBTQIA+ Community,” sourced by another intern, which includes definitions, explanations of various topics within the community, and outreach resources. 

Book of the Week: Disappoint Me by Nicola Dinan

This tender, layered novel follows two timelines: Max, a transgender woman navigating a new relationship in the present, and Vincent, the man she’s begun seeing, whose story unfolds a decade earlier. I was especially moved by the way the novel explores romantic dynamics between men and trans women, intergenerational family trauma, forgiveness, and shared cultural identity, as both Max and Vincent are of Chinese heritage. 

But what stayed with me most was the profound affirmation that while Max’s transness is central to who she is, her experience of womanhood carries a universal resonance. Nicola Dinan captures the quiet strength of queer storytelling–how identity and mental health are deeply intertwined, echoing the heart of this week’s blog. Happy Pride! 

Resources 

  • NAMI Mercer Helpline Phone Number: 609-799-8994 x17
  • NAMI Mercer Helpline Email: helpline@namimercer.org
  • LGBT National Help Center: https://lgbthotline.org/
  • The Trevor Project: https://www.thetrevorproject.org/resources/

References 

  • “LGBTQ+ Communities and Mental Health .” Mental Health America, mhanational.org/resources/lgbtq-communities-and-mental-health/. Accessed 9 June 2025.
  • American Psychiatric Association. “Psychiatry.org – Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer/Questioning.” Psychiatry.org, 2024, www.psychiatry.org/psychiatrists/diversity/education/lgbtq-patients.
  • Intersect. “Intersectionality | LBGTIQ Intersect.” Lgbtiqintersect.org.au, 2019, www.lgbtiqintersect.org.au/learning-modules/intersectionality/.


Coming Out to Love & Support

By

In recognition of June being designated as pride month, as a NAMI Mercer intern I would like to highlight some of the mental health struggles the LGBTQ+ community faces.

The coming out process can be a difficult and emotional experience for members of the LGBTQ+ community due both to difficulties with self-acceptance and uncertainty about the reactions of family and friends. Coming out is a lifelong process and if someone experiences rejection early on, it can prevent them from acknowledging their identity for a long time, leading to increased anguish and unhappiness, resulting in mental health issues. Rejection and/or a lack of understanding/support from loved ones can strain relationships and make the person trying to come out feel unloved.

Members of the LGB community are twice as likely as their straight counterparts to experience mental health issues and feelings of hopelessness; transgender individuals are nearly four times as likely as their cisgender counterparts to experience these issues. LGBTQ+ youth are also four times as likely as their straight counterparts to attempt suicide. Among the major risk factors associated with these mental health issues is receiving negative reactions upon coming out, as cited by The Trevor Project, a well-known suicide prevention organization for LGBTQ+ youth.

The most important thing loved ones can do to mitigate the risk of depression and suicide among members of the LGBTQ+ community is to be supportive during the coming out process, even if they have mixed feelings about this news. Parents can demonstrate support by actively listening to what their child is trying to tell them –without interruption, without finishing their thoughts for them. There’s a high likelihood that someone coming out has been thinking about their identity for years, and in this moment, they need to feel heard. They’ll be happy to answer any questions, provided they are asked in a respectful manner.

A psychiatrist at the Child Mind Institute notes, “when people feel loved and supported, they are more capable; they have greater resilience.” You can support a person coming out by treating them the way you did prior to their coming out, staying calm, getting to know their romantic partners, and educating yourself about this community. Helping someone feel loved is the most important thing you can ever do.

There are various resources online, available both to family members and LGBTQ+ individuals, to help them navigate the coming out process. Strong Family Alliance provides information and resources to LGBTQ+ people and their families. Their website details stages of coming out, how different parental actions can help or hurt an LGBTQ+ child, and the challenges parents and children may face after coming out. The Trevor Project is another valuable resource, as is a local LGBTQ+ center. Each person’s coming out experience is different but the need for love and support is common to everyone. Let’s make it a point to extend that love and support to anyone who needs it, this month and every month.

By NAMI Mercer Summer 2022 Intern Alexis