To unrstand the ntext of a person's life urse, is cril to unrstand the age hort to which that dividual belongs. Youth growg up today will see chang that earlier generatns of lbians and gay men would never have expected their lifetim, cludg policians, bs lears, and tors who are openly gay; marriage between same-sex upl; and an evolvg popular and artistic culture that provis many posive portrayals of lbian and gay characters movi and plays, on televisn, and lerature. Today's youth are able to e the Inter to retrieve onle rmatn about LGBT issu, providg social workg opportuni and accs to knowledge a way that was not available to olr horts. At the same time, young LGBT people searchg the Inter and teractg wh their peers will be aware of the pervasive negative views of sexual and genr mori.
Contents:
SEXUAL ORIENTATN AND VELOPMENTAL CHALLENG EXPERIENCED BY GAY AND LBIAN YOUTHS
Jt the Facts provis rmatn and rourc for prcipals, tors and school personnel who nont sensive issu volvg gay, lbian and bisexual stunts. * homosexual orientation in adolescence *
Dpe the persistence of stereotyp that portray lbian, gay, and bisexual people as disturbed, several s of rearch and clil experience have led all mastream medil and mental health anizatns this untry to nclu that the orientatns reprent normal forms of human experience.
Helpful rpons of a therapist treatg an dividual who is troubled about her or his same sex attractns clu helpg that person actively pe wh social prejudic agast homosexualy, succsfully rolve issu associated wh and rultg om ternal nflicts, and actively lead a happy and satisfyg life.
Teenagers who are gay, lbian, or bisexual (GLB) are overwhelmgly siar to their non-GLB peers. However, bee of societal stigma or potential rejectn,the adolcents may face var challeng durg their adolcent years and are at greater risk for substance abe, prsn, suici, and sexually transmted diseas (STDs) t... * homosexual orientation in adolescence *
The phrase “g out” is ed to refer to several aspects of lbian, gay, and bisexual persons’ experienc: self-awarens of same-sex attractns; the tellg of one or a few people about the attractns; wispread disclosure of same-sex attractns; and intifitn wh the lbian, gay, and bisexual muny.
Th, is not surprisg that lbians and gay men who feel they mt nceal their sexual orientatn report more equent mental health ncerns than do lbians and gay men who are more open; they may even have more physil health problems. Lbian, gay, and bisexual youth who do well spe strs—like all adolcents who do well spe strs—tend to be those who are socially petent, who have good problem-solvg skills, who have a sense of tonomy and purpose, and who look forward to the future. If they are a heterosexual relatnship, their experienc may be que siar to those of people who intify as heterosexual unls they choose to e out as bisexual; that se, they will likely face some of the same prejudice and discrimatn that lbian and gay dividuals enunter.