By Sophie Pellegrini, MSW, LMSW
In celebration of Pride Month, The Center for Mindfulness & CBT will be featuring some of our most-loved articles around LGBTQIA+ issues, as well as hosting our popular Teen LGBTQIA+ Group starting Monday, June 19.
Most parents want nothing more than for their children to thrive, succeed, and experience all the best in life; it can be painful and challenging as a parent to come to terms with your child having an identity or lived experience that you imagine may make their life harder. We know that transgender and gender expansive people are more likely to experience mental health challenges, discrimination, isolation, harassment, bullying, and rejection, due to societal systems of oppression based on gender, compared to cisgender folks. Considering this reality as the parent of a trans person may mean confronting many of your own challenging emotions—such as fear, anger, grief, anxiety, and sadness.
Fortunately, we also know that affirmative, supportive parenting can have a significant positive impact. Trans folks who perceive their parents as supportive and affirming report better positive mental, physical, and emotional health outcomes. For example, those with affirmative parents are:
- Over twice as likely to experience life satisfaction
- Over twice as likely to report very good overall health
- Five times as likely to have high self-esteem
- Less than half as likely to attempt suicide than those who didn’t perceive support
In other words, trans-affirmative parenting can make a world of difference to trans folks.
If you’d like to better support your LGBTQIA+ teen, we are hosting a 6-week, in person support group. The Teen LGBTQIA+ Group starts Monday, June 19. To learn more, click here.
