More than half of non-binary Scots say they have poor mental health

What does non-binary identities have to do with prejudice and stigma that gays and lesbians face? One is an opt-in subculture and ideological statement, the other is innate sexual orientation. You cannot meaningfully group the two together in regards to unsupportive environment without trivialising the discrimination that actual sexual minorities face.

What is going to make people feel secure and happy in the world when they are fully supported in believing a philosophical belief is material when it isn’t and can never be objectively real? Then you add in the spreading narrative that those who believe the material and proven facts that disprove that philosophical belief hate you and don’t want you to exist and you have a ready made mental health issue within society.

I think this question should be asked on a frequent basis :

“Should a psychological idea take precedence over a physical fact?”— Dr. Paul McHugh, Distinguished Services Professor, Johns Hopkins University School of Medical

Bears have been seen defecating in forested areas.

It's the same for ALL populations that are struggling with lack of societal support. Pick a marginalised group, look at the terrible mental health of its members. Asylum seekers, lesbian women, Traveller communities, single mums of disabled children.... not just the rainbow people.

I mean this is hardly surprising, and replicates the same international findings, that mental health in LGBTQ populations is poor for those in unsupportive environments with high levels of prejudice and stigma, but improves with higher levels of social support.

https://bmcpsychiatry.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12888-023-05202-z

https://www.nature.com/articles/s44220-024-00201-9

https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12889-023-16034-7

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/382043743_Community_belonging_and_acceptance_is_this_the_antidote_to_shame_and_societal_discrimination_An_exploration_of_LGBTQ_individuals'_attendance_at_pride_and_their_mental_health

https://time.com/6972292/anti-lgbtq-policies-have-an-alarming-effect-on-youth-mental-health/

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/08862605221108087

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2468266723003122

Of course they do. Believing you have a magic non binary gender identity is often a consequence of mental ill health of some form in the first place.

It's just so desperately sad, isn't it? My hubby is a bit of a be-kinder but one of the main things that has really got through to him is highlighting the mental health aspects because it's just so obvious, especially if you know people in this position, as he does. And no, it's not that their mental health is poor because of the way society treats them. And while we're all focusing on hormones and pronouns and all the rest, what actual support are people getting? Nothing that will really help and yet the NHS are off the hook because they use the right lanyards. It's a massive red herring for so many young people, particularly young women, who actually need real support. It makes me sad and furious in equal measure.

Just to spell it out, if we turned the world upside down and said you're absolutely right, biological sex is not important and won't be recorded on birth certificates or any other official documentation or data any more, and health care practitioners won't make you feel unsafe by asking your sex as part of their attempts to find out what's wrong with you and make it better - do we think their mental health would improve? I'd say no, because coming out as non-binary or trans so often seems to be a desperate attempt to find out why they feel so lost and unwell. But unfortunately there is no solid evidence that it does help. I'd wager a lot of the short-term improvement in people's wellbeing after coming out/transitioning is just a result of getting a lot of positive attention, and sadly that won't last.

Half of popes are Catholic reports self reported survey.

...and in other news, water is wet.

Shocked face.

But what came first, the chicken or the egg?

Astounded.

😱