Emotional Disability Caused by Anxiety or Depression related to Non-heterosexual Orientation By Kelsie B. Eckert

Introduction What it is? Information Concerns? The Cycle of Concealment How to recognize it? What causes these behaviors? How to help? Resources References

What it is? Emotional Disabilities are disabilities caused by emotion that keep students from performing academically. For gay, lesbian, transgender, and bisexual students, these disabilities are often caused by anxiety and/or depression.

Information In general, studies have shown that these students have greater internalizing and externalizing problems than their heterosexual peers. emotional disabilities are often caused by family or community stigmatization, victimization, or a general lack of support

Concerns? 44% of students with emotional disabilities drop out of high school. Students are coming out at younger ages and the younger the age the increased morbidity.

The Cycle of Concealment Hiding attribute may provide relief from prejudice or discrimination. Individual cannot escape the knowledge that society devalues the attribute. Society’s devaluation of the attribute may lead to a negative self-regard. Restart cycle.

How to recognize it? Behaviors May Include: Impression management. Social avoidance and isolation. Increased importance of feedback. Impaired close relationship functioning

What causes these behaviors? Stressors. These include: Decisions on whether to disclose their attribute. Anxiety about being found out. Feeling isolated from similarly attributed others. Feeling detached from one’s true self

How to help? Reattribute distress to concealment—not innate flaws. Encourage self-disclosure of non-heterosexual orientation in realistic—non-hostile environments. If possible, connect to similarly attributed persons.

Resources Parents, Family, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) website Parents of LGBT children website The Plymouth, NH PFLAG chapter meets the 2nd Tuesday each month 7-9pm at Whole Village Resource Center on Highland Street, Plymouth. Call 603-536-3823.

References Gore, M. C., & Gore, M. C. (2010). Inclusion strategies for secondary classrooms: Keys for struggling learners. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin. Elze, D. E. (2002). Risk factors for internalizing and externalizing problems among gay, lesbian, and bisexual adolescents.” Social Work Research, 26(2), 89. Pachankis, J. E. (2007). “The psychological implications of concealing a stigma: A cognitive-affective-behavioral model.” Psychological Bulletin, 133(2), 328-34.