INTRODUCTION INTRODUCTION
This site is about gay people, they way the world looks at them, and the way
that they look at themselves. As a gay man, I have faced a society intolerant
to my sexuality, only to find myself in an irresponsible, increasingly commercialised
society that seems entirely unaware of its own needs or direction.
This site will look at some of the issues facing gay men today. I understand that this is a very contentious issue, and that there are many points of view, but I hope you'll hear me out.
So what's up with gay people?
Gay people have problems, serious ones, and it seems that there are many of us who would prefer not to pay attention to them. Study after study show that gay people have a vulnerability to a variety of social, psychological and medical ills that appear much less in the straight world. Why is this? How many of these problems are created for us, and which do we create ourselves? More importantly, what can we do about them?
What evidence exists for the extra problems faced by people who are gay?
There are many sources of research into the lives of gay people, try any search engine, but one of the most damning reports I've read is available on:
The results section of this survey reads:
Gay, lesbian, and bisexual young people were at increased risks of major depression
(odds ratio [OR], 4.0; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.8-9.3), generalised anxiety
disorder (OR, 2.8; 95% CI, 1.2-6.5), conduct disorder (OR, 3.8; 95% CI, 1.7-8.7),
nicotine dependence (OR, 5.0; 95%, CI, 2.3-10.9), other substance abuse and/or
dependence (OR, 1.9; 95% CI, 0.9-4.2), multiple disorders (OR, 5.9; 95% CI,
2.4-14.8), suicidal ideation (OR, 5.4; 95% CI, 2.4-12.2), and suicide attempts
(OR, 6.2; 95% CI, 2.7-14.3). CONCLUSIONS: Findings support recent evidence suggesting
that gay, lesbian, and bisexual young people are at increased risk of mental
health problems, with these associations being particularly evident for measures
of suicidal behaviour and multiple disorder.
The odds ratio is the number of times more likely that a young LBG person will suffer the disease than a 'normal' control. Given this, LBG youths are:
4 times more likely to suffer major depression
2.8 times more likely to suffer generalised anxiety disorder
3.8 times more likely to suffer conduct disorder
5 times more likely to suffer nicotine dependence
1.9 times more likely to suffer other substance abuse/dependence
5.9 times more likely to suffer multiple disorder
5.4 times more likely to consider suicide and
6.2 times more likely to attempt suicide
The CI (confidence interval) values suggest we may not be able to put much stock in the 'other substance abuse' category, but the whole picture is still shocking. What can possibly be the cause of all this?
As things stand, we are losing our minds, and our lives. We are all aware of the stereotype of a gay man being healthy and toned (or crippled with AIDS). It would appear to be only superficially true, however.
As I go through the reasons for this ongoing tragedy, I will also suggest the directions we may move in, and respond to some of the less constructive criticism that is heaped upon the gay community.