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Pride Month in Central Florida with your Mental Health Provide
As you may know, June is Pride Month, celebrating the diversity and contributions of the LGBTQ+ community. Pride Month gives us the opportunity to celebrate our LGBTQ+ friends, family, and fellow acquaintances. This is a time to promote dignity, respect, equality, and visibility in lieu of social stigma historically shown to members of this diverse community. Pride Month is especially important to Orlando and Aspire, as this June will mark the 6-year anniversary of the Pulse Nightclub shooting, a tragedy we will never forget. We encourage each of you to take the time to learn about the rich history and unique contributions of LGBTQ+ individuals to our shared history and explore Pride events happening in the Central Florida area and your community.
With that said, this is a good time to reflect and think about whether you allow yourself to feel proud of the person you are? Does that translate into giving grace to yourself and others? We hope so, because when we have self-love and self-respect it impacts our lives and the lives of everyone around us. When we are in a “good place” with ourselves, we can appreciate diversity, practice inclusion, and we are able to extend kindness to others.
For groups that have historically been marginalized, achieving these feelings of self-love and self-respect can be difficult. We know this is especially true for those who identify as LGBTQ+. The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) reported this year that people who identify as gay, lesbian or bisexual are twice as likely to experience mental health issues than their heterosexual counterparts. The ratio doubles for those who identify as transgender. Survey participants cited cultural conditions including discrimination, harassment, and family rejection as a key influence on their mental wellbeing.
During Pride Month, we have a special opportunity to celebrate diversity with our LGBTQ+ friends and family, and we can impact their lives and ours for the better. If you are someone that wants to see our community and nation become mentally healthier, we encourage you to be proud of who you are, show yourself love, and share those feelings with others. If you are an ally, remember to show some extra love to our LGBTQ+ community this month, and help make your community a beautiful, diverse, inclusive, and colorful place to live!
If you or someone you know is experiencing challenges, Aspire wants you to know you don’t have to face them alone. Call us at (407) 875-3700, Option 3, or visit our website. Our professionals are here to help!