Recently I started an Intensive Outpatient Program for people with eating disorders. In group therapy one of the care providers said that humans want 3 sorts of things, power and control, attention and acceptance, and security and certainty. Something along those lines, anyway. And she told us our eating disorder tries to provide one or more of these things, and thats why people feel they need their eating disorder. It fulfills a purpose for us.
We are not trained in suicide prevention. If you have come here because you are actively suicidal, please go to our suicide prevention resources page and contact one of the listed resources immediately. http://queermentalhealth.org/suicide/
Welcome to QueerMentalHealth.org! We are a community-based support and resource site for queer people with mental health issues. We welcome anybody including (but by no means limited to) people who are gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, two-spirited, intersexed, queer, questioning, and allies as well.
Writers Wanted!
We are always looking for new writers! If you want a safe space to write about your mental health issues, you have come to the right place. You are welcome to join the Queer Mental Health Writers' Team. You may be credited or anonymous, with names or details modified to protect your privacy, and the privacy of others mentioned in your work. Check out the details at http://queermentalhealth.org/write/
16 Dec 2014
Confessions of a First Time Cutter
I just cut myself, intentionally, for the first time, perhaps only 10 minutes before I started writing this sentence. I am now a cutter. I don’t know if I’ll ever do it again, but I needed to do something, I needed a release. Pressure has been back building in my life for a little bit now, and lately it’s like someone opened the valves wide open. It’s… unpleasant. After a conversation with someone, I hit my limits and I felt outright suicidal.
20 Nov 2014
Transgender Day of Remembrance, 2014
Trigger Warning: Violence, Transphobia
Today is the day where we take a moment to remember all the trans people murdered because of anti-trans bigotry. There are 78 names on the list this year, a horrifying number.
04 Mar 2014
A Trans Woman’s Open Letter to Her Dad
Hi Dad,
It is time to address the last sticking point in my transition. I don’t need to remind you that I am making the single biggest step in this journey in three weeks (and yes, I’m absolutely certain). If required, I will go into greater detail, but you don’t want that and I’m not excited to have to.
27 Feb 2014
Challenging the “High-Functioning”/”Low-Functioning” Divide
I know that those of us who are perceived as “high-functioning” have some real privilege compared to people who are perceived as “low-functioning.” For one thing, we’re less likely to get harassed by cops. I also know that there are huge differences among the ways different people experience madness and mental disability. I also think that the division really hurts all of us.
I want a world where we can all get what we need and get treated with dignity, where institutions don’t get to decide who deserves what based on what label they put on us.
25 Feb 2014
Inertia
I have been literally paralyzed these last couple of months. I began working towards a college degree in September of this year. Initially I chose one course, hoping that by the time it was over I’d have a better idea of what I wanted to major in, since I am interested in so many things and the choice seemed impossible. If anything, it’s made the whole thing worse.
06 Feb 2014
How To Lose Friends and Not Yourself
You are not the sum of what your friends tell you. Despite what people say, no one knows you better than you know yourself. They receive a projection of you. You know how you are, and you know how you tick.
04 Feb 2014
When a Friend Threatens to Commit Suicide (Trigger Warnings)
Trigger Warning: Suicide, Self Harm, Relationship Abuse
It is three-thirty in the morning here and over the past twenty-four hours I have learnt a harsh lesson. It is a lesson that has left me feeling tired and drained, vulnerable and hurting, awful and selfish. Around twenty-four hours ago, a close friend (an online friend if you feel the need to know) threatened to commit suicide. She posted in a group saying that she could just not handle life any longer, that it was too much and that she was going to kill herself.
29 Jan 2014
Welcome to our new Editor – Katie Bongiorno
I’m sure you’ve noticed a lack of articles being published for the last 6 months. Life has been hectic, especially with my wedding being planned. I’m now getting back into the swing of things though, and we’ll be seeing more articles going up. Good thing too, because there are a lot of submissions in the queue! (I want to thank all my writers for being so patient with me!)
20 Nov 2013
Transgender Day Of Rememberance, 2013
Trigger Warning: Transphobia, Murder, Hate, Suicide
This is the time of year I dread. I wish we lived in a world where we didn’t need a day like the Transgender Day of Remembrance, but we do. And the numbers are staggering, growing each year. Not because more trans people are being murdered now than ever before (though that may also be the case), but because more victims are being recognized and identified as transgender, and more of these crimes are being reported and recognized as crimes.