3 mental health resources for the LGBTQIA+ community

“I had to stop seeing my first therapist because we both reached a point where we knew that she couldn’t help me with my dysphoria, so I started looking for therapists who were Queer affirming,” says Durga Gawde as they explained to me what went into finding a good therapist to help them with trauma related to their body.

“Then I asked myself who would I listen to? Who would I want to listen to? So I defined it. I wanted a professional who was non binary, who is assigned female at birth, who went by they/them pronouns, so I could identify with my therapist and they could identify with me as a patient,” they added.

And after a lot of searching, Durga found just that, “Finally I found a therapist that helped me with my dysphoria because they understood what that felt like. They also explained to me that there was not much information out there because of the lack of knowledge on the subject.

At that time, I was completely disconnected with my breasts, and I was looking for information on top surgery that would help in some way with my dysphoria.

My therapist asked me to do one thing, and it’s so silly now that I think of it. They told me to find a bra that actually fits me and one that I felt good in, so I could embrace this side of me that I had ignored for so many years. And there I was, on a journey to get in sync with my breasts.”

Durga is an artist, activist, educator and India’s 1st Drag King.Their story is an important example of how complicated navigating through therapy can be, but how important it is, especially for queer folks.

So we’ve put something together.

For those of you that need some direction, here are some places you can reach out to for mental health help, specifically if you are an LGBTQIA+ person:

Connecting Trust, NGO & Distress Helpline:
“As a suicide prevention NGO, we know the importance of educating ourselves regarding the needs of the LGBTQIA+ community,” says Vikram Singh, Recruitment and training manager at Connecting Trust.

Connecting NGO is a non judgemental listening service for those feeling low, distressed and/or suicidal.

Vikram continued to tell me, “Gender is a spectrum and it is really important that our volunteers are educated on gender identity and sexual distress before they can start taking any helpline calls.” The LGBTQIA+ community has one of the highest rates of suicide in the world.

Resistive Alliance for Queer Solidarity (RAQS)

RAQS was founded by Toshi and Dharmesh, 5 years ago. It is an artist activist organisation which works with the queer community on issues like gender, sexuality and mental health.

They organised the first queer film festival along with Humsafar Trust in Prayagraj. They have also helped the queer folks from the smallest villages and towns of Uttar Pradesh to understand their sexuality and cherish it.

Ya-All (Yawol)

In Manipuri ‘Ya-al’ means revolution. They provide mental health care services through queer friendly counsellors and mental health professionals, all pro bono.

They have an informal space for youth who identify as queer to interact with each other and build a support system and peer network at their resource center.

We hope this list helps!

In general, if you are an LGBTQIA+ person in need of mental health help, you have the right to ask for a queer affirming therapist —sometimes just any other professional will not do.

You are valid, not alone, and we’re in this together.

Writer: Tarsha Kohli