Based on my read of the scientific literature, the conclusion I reach is that gay youth are rather ordinary adolescents and young adults. Yes, some are at-risk, but these clinically fragile youth exist in the same proportion and to the same degree among heterosexual youth.
Why this is important is that as a clinician, I’m worried about the “message” we’re giving to gay youth. I’m worried about suicide contagion (publicizing gay youth suicide may provoke similar behavior among vulnerable youth). I’m worried about our inability to understand their lives. And, I’m worried about adult tendencies to insert our life experiences onto those of youth. Just because we had a difficult gay adolescence does not mean that today’s gay youth experience the same pain.
Maybe we should listen to youth about their actual lives. If we did, we would learn that, for the most part, the “suffering suicidal script” is not an accurate one. In reality, the gay kids are all right.
This is a quote from a very interesting article on the reality-vs.-perception of how life is for gay youth today. It's something I've been thinking about lately, in one respect or another, and it is something I think we need to be aware of when discussing teen suicides. The mind of the person who is considering suicide as an option may be more prone to consider that option more seriously when they constantly see other kids publicized and sainted.
It's an interesting thought. The discussion should always be on bullying, anti-gay bias, and discrimination.
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