Most parents love their children! That love is what will help parents to survive the initial shock of hearing that their son or daughter is gay. After a period of disbelief or denial, most parents can be counted on to be supportive. Here are some guidelines for parents to deal with their child’s homosexuality.
- If your teen is gay or lesbian you should provide emotional support, despite the fact that you may have trouble accepting it.
- Counseling and/or psychotherapy are suggested for teenagers who are uncomfortable with or uncertain about their sexual orientation. Therapy can help with adjusting to society in general. Make no mistake, sending a child for conversion therapy to change their sexual orientation has not been shown to work.
- There are many local and national gay support groups (see list below) that can help a homosexual teenager to overcome some of the stigmatization and negative feedback that he or she gets.
- It is extremely important that ALL teenagers understand the information about the risk for sexually transmitted diseases. Homosexual transmission of HIV is common and knowing the importance of condoms and other protection against such transmissions is essential.
- A very large percentage, up to 95 percent, of LGBT teenagers report that they are often called names or threatened. As a result, they often skip school because they feel unsafe. LGBT teenagers are three-times more likely to be assaulted than their heterosexual peers. In addition, they are threatened and injured more by weapons. Additionally, lesbian and bisexual teenagers are more likely than heterosexual girls to be victims of rape or attempted rape.
- Take care of yourself, too. Parents should make sure that they seek support, as well. Groups like PFLAG are available to answer questions and offer help. The most important thing for parents is to gain knowledge, be understanding, and most importantly be supportive.
In my next blog, I will discuss the STDs and Safe Sex for teenagers.
DISCLAIMER
Information contained in this blog is intended for educational purposes only. It is not intended as medical or psychiatric advice for individual conditions or treatment and does not substitute for a medical or psychiatric examination. A psychiatrist must make a determination about any treatment or prescription. Dr. Paul does not assume any responsibility or risk for the use of any information contained within this blog.