IndexDiagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM)Disparities in careConclusionDespite increasing public support for LGBT issues, community members are still at higher risk of impaired mental health. Over the past two decades, the great emergence of scientific and public awareness of LGBT life and issues has had an impact. This awareness includes socio-cultural changes in the understanding of sexual and gender identities. It can be traced back to the gay rights movement in the 1970s and the advent of HIV/AIDS in the 1980s. The first research dedicated to LGBT youth explicitly focuses on mental health. A small number of studies in the 1980s began to identify rates of reported suicidal behavior among “gay” youth, and a US federal report on “gay youth suicide” (Gibson 1989) became controversial in both policy and research (Russell 2003). We say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essayDuring the last two decades there have not only been major changes in public attitudes toward LGBT people and issues (Gallup 2015), but also the arrival of research in multiple and diverse fields that has created a solid foundation of knowledge regarding mental health in LGBT youth. In recent years, changes in social acceptance have made coming out possible for many people, however there are still issues surrounding the social regulation of gender and sexuality, such as homophobia. Due to social and historical issues, mental health is an urgent concern for LGBT youth, regardless of growing social acceptance. Mental Health in LGBT YouthPrior to the 1970s homosexuality was listed as a “sociopathic personality disorder” in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) Studies on the Prevalence of Homosexual Sexuality (Ford and Beach 1951) (Kinsey et al 1948,1953) and psychological comparisons between gay and heterosexual men stimulated a change in attitudes in the psychological community and led to the removal of homosexuality as a mental disorder in 1973, although all conditions regarding same-sex attraction are not were removed until 1987. The topic of same-sex sexuality has moved away from the idea that there is essentially a link between poor mental health and homosexuality, towards understanding the social determinants of LGBT mental health. There have also been recent debates regarding gender identity-related diagnoses that currently remain in the DSM. Adolescence is a critical period for mental health and this is because many mental illnesses begin during or shortly after this developmental phase (Kessler et al 2005,2007). In addition to this, suicide is the third leading cause of death for youth ages 10 to 14 and the second leading cause of death for those ages 15 to 24 (CDC 2012). Knowledge of the mental health prevalence of LGB people has improved significantly with the inclusion of measures of sexual attraction, behavior, and identity in population-based studies. There is a great need for growth and inclusion of measures to identify transgender people in order to gain a greater understanding of mental health among transgender youth. International studies consistently conclude that LGBT youth report higher rates of emotional distress, symptoms related to mood and anxiety disorders, suicidal behavior and self-harm, compared to heterosexual youth (Eskin et al 2005, Marshal et alto 2011). In a recent meta analysis, (Marshall et al, 2011), reported that sexual minority youth were almost three times more likely to report suicidality, a statistically moderate difference in depressive symptoms was noted compared to heterosexual youth. While there is a plethora of literature highlighting differences in symptoms and distress, there is a lack of studies exploring the presence of mental health disorders or diagnoses among LGBT youth. Fergusson et al (1999) used a cohort of young Australians aged 14 to 21 years and found that LGB young people were more likely to report suicidal thoughts or attempts and experienced greater depression, substance abuse or anxiety disorders. generalized anxiety. subsequently Fergusson et al (2005) conducted another rather interesting study to show the differences between LGB young people. Studies have found that when it comes to suicide among LGB youth, there is a stronger association between sexual orientation and suicide attempts for sexual minority males than for sexual minority females. LGBT youth face fear, hatred and prejudice at school, with friends, in the community and at home, which can lead to increased risks of self-harm and suicidal thoughts. LGBT adolescents are six times more likely to experience symptoms of depression than the general population. Additionally, LGBTQ youth have difficulty coming out to family, friends, classmates, and teachers, especially those who are not accepting of the LGBTQ community. GLSEN, the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, developed an annual report called the National School Climate Survey, which reports on the experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth in U.S. schools. Early intervention, comprehensive treatment and family support are key to helping LGBT youth on the path to recovery from a mental health condition. Triggers Meyer's (1995,2003) minority stress theory provided a framework for understanding discrepancies in the mental health of sexual minorities. The theory proposed that sexual minorities experience clear chronic stressors regarding their stigmatized identities. This includes discrimination, victimization or prejudice. These negative experiences combined with daily stressors compromise the mental health of LGBT people. Overall, the minority stress model is based on the idea that the relationship between members of minority and dominant communities results in social conflict with the social environment. As for sexual minorities, this concerns people from the LGBT community who are confronted with a homophobic culture that can be hostile to them. Minority stress does not manifest itself in the same way for every minority group and depends on their personal experiences. Sexual minorities may experience stress due to perceived discrimination or from situations in which they may be bullied or harassed or become victims of violence. Issues such as perceived discrimination can lead to problem behaviors such as cigarette smoking, poor diet or substance abuse. Being verbally bullied or physically harmed due to minority status can cause a great deal of distress and can result in mental health problems that may not even be immediately diagnosed. For example, some members of the LGBT community may experience stress from being rejected because of their identity, from hiding their sexual orientation, or from internalized homophobia. Stress can have a huge effect on an individual's physical and mental well-being. When an individual isWhen stressed, certain hormones are released which are often referred to as stress hormones. If the stress response system is activated frequently over a long period of time, it can disrupt several body processes, ultimately increasing the risk of numerous health problems. Stress can prematurely age the immune system and increase the risk of various age-related diseases. There is evidence of the benefits of consistent positive stress that shows how stress can actually be related to longevity, if a person does not view it as negative. Researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison asked nearly 29,000 people to rate their level of stress over the past year and how much they believed this stress had affected their health: a little, moderately or a lot. Over the next eight years, public death registers were used to record the death of any individual. They found that people who reported having high levels of stress and who believed that stress had a large impact on their health had a whopping 43 percent increased risk of death. On the other hand, those who experienced a lot of stress but did not perceive its negative effects were among those less likely to die than all other study participants. When we refer to the stress experienced by the LGBT community, we are only talking about the negative impact. Within the LGBT community, stress varies among lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals. This is highly due to the level of acceptance in society. Lesbians are more accepted in society but have been more widely fetishised, gays are less accepted due to toxic masculinity, yet are more likely to be represented in the media. Bisexuals are considered to be subject to identity crises and are often subjected to harassment within and outside the LGBT group. Transgenders are the least accepted in society and are the most at risk. Harassment is a major factor contributing to poor mental health in the LGBT community. LGBT people are victims of harassment and violence, especially at school. This form of harassment is known as hate crimes. In 1992, the United States Congress defined hate crimes "as a defendant's conduct motivated by hatred, partiality, or prejudice based on race, color, religion, national origin, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, or actual or perception of another individual or group of individuals". Punishment for hate crimes has become more severe over the years. Gregory M. Herek (1993,1996) conducted a study to investigate the effects of hate crimes on mental health. The study used a range of people, the sample included gay, bisexual and lesbian men. The average age was 34 and there was an equal amount of males and females. Participants were asked to complete a questionnaire about their experiences with crime, their community involvement and their beliefs on various topics. The results of the study showed that hate crimes had a greater psychological impact than other crimes. Lesbian and gay survivors of hate crimes (stress, depression, and anger) showed significantly higher levels of distress than those who survived crimes not related to sexual orientation. The increased distress was thought to be caused by the association of personal vulnerability related to their identity. In addition to causing more stress, the duration of distress from hate crimes was also longer than from non-bias crimes. Harassment refers to a broad spectrum of offensive behaviors. The Journal of Adolescent Health published a study to explore thelink between discrimination at school and mental health risks. The data comparing lesbian, gay, and bisexual youth to heterosexual youth was taken from the 1995 Youth Risk Behavior Survey. The study's conclusion states that "the findings provide evidence that differences in health risks between LGB youth are mediated by discrimination at school." ''There are many different types of harassment including bullying, psychological harassment, racial harassment, religious harassment, sexual harassment, street stalking and gang stalking. Verbal harassment is defined as the act of making negative statements toward someone causing emotional harm. Verbal harassment is the most frequently reported type of harassment as there are no limitations. The Gay, Lesbian and Straight Society Education Network measured anti-gay harassment encountered in schools. They found that61. 1% of gay and lesbian transgender students reported being verbally harassed. The Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology published an article examining verbal and physical abuse of LGBT youth. The article states that "this response to gay, lesbian, and bisexual adolescents by significant others in their environment is often associated with several problematic outcomes, including running away from home, conflicts with the law, school-related problems, substances, prostitution and suicide. Although the causal link between these stressors has not been established scientifically, there is suggestive evidence that these outcomes are consequences of verbal and physical harassment. Bullying is a form of harassment that can occur not only in the backyard school, but also in the classroom or in the workplace. This type of psychological harassment can be mortifying and can certainly lower an individual's self-esteem. Bullying is generally seen in the form of actions, gestures or verbal comments'' (savin- williams,1994). Bullying can also occur in writing, for example on the walls of school bathrooms. Homophobia is one of the reasons why young people are often harassed. Homophobic bullying and harassment are estimated to be the cause of one in five homosexuals attempting to kill themselves. Bullying is a type of trauma so it can cause damage to an individual's health. Research has shown that LGB youth are more likely than adults to be victims of antigay prejudice and that the psychological consequences of their victimization may be more severe. Surveys conducted in schools in several regions of the United States have shown that LGB youth are exposed to more incidents of discrimination and violence than their heterosexual peers. Many of these studies, conducted on population-based samples of high school students, coincide in their findings and show that the social environment of sexual minority youth in U.S. high schools is characterized by discrimination, rejection, and violence (Faulkner & Cranston, 1998; Garofalo, Wolf, Kessel, Palfrey, & DuRant, 1998). Compared to heterosexual youth, LGB youth are at greater risk of being threatened and assaulted, are more fearful for their safety at school, and miss days of school because of this fear (Safe Schools Coalition of Washington, 1999). In a random sample of Massachusetts high school students, LGB students more often than heterosexual students had property stolen or deliberately harmed, been threatened or injured with a weapon, and fought physically requiring medical attention (Safe Schools Coalition of Washington, 1999). A national survey of LGBT youth conducted by the advocacy organization Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN; 1999) reported that.