Sexual Identity

Our sexuality and gender can form a big part of our identity and for many people, coming to terms with their sexuality can cause a lot of stress and anxiety. You may know from an early age that you are gay, lesbian, bisexual, transsexual, pansexual, asexual, non-binary or you may be questioning.

In some cases, a person’s sexuality can cause discrimination and possibly bullying due to a lack of understanding. Thankfully there is an ever increasing understanding of diverse sexuality and we have come a long way, when you consider that incredibly the World Health Organization’s decision to declassify homosexuality as a mental disorder was only made in 1990!

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The acronym LGBTQ is used to describe the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community. LGB refers to sexual orientation and the “T” refers to issues of gender identity. The letter "Q" is sometimes added to the end & refers to questioning.

Sexual orientation describes a person's attraction to another person whereas gender identity is your own sense of being a man or a woman.

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 The LGBTQ community are statistically at a greater risk of developing a mental health condition than those in the wider population. 

 

Symptoms may include: 

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Depression
Anxiety 
Self-harm
Suicidal thoughts

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How can counselling help me?

Counselling offers a safe & non-judgemental place to explore feelings relating to sexual orientation or identity.  Concerns can be shared such as fears, sexual issues, relationships and feelings of alienation from society with the aim of ultimately helping a person come to terms with their sexual identity.

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