Self-Acceptance and Accepting Others

Self-acceptance, respecting others’ personal choices, and LGBTQ pride

Self-acceptance, self-worth, and self-esteem are key factors in feeling good in our own bodies and identities, they also directly play a role in physical and mental health. Celebrating pride day as an LGBTQ member or supporter shows equality for each person feeling proud of who they are and cultivating their own personal wellness journey.

LGBTQ people can be discriminated against and not receive proper care within the medical and health fields. By voicing support we as a community can help to support proper human rights and safety for all.

What does this all mean?

This article is intended to celebrate the LGBTQ community and to bring awareness to all; health-related topics. As humans, each person has their own challenges with health concerns. They may go through a series of processes to find the best help or solutions.

Research has indicated that people within the LGBTQ community are less likely to feel comfortable in health care settings due to feelings of discrimination based on their identity. This is an injustice within the healthcare industry. “Many of these challenges centers on discrimination (both from providers and society), social stigma, and negative stereotypes, LGBTQ individuals are often grouped together within the research context, despite the existence of unique subgroups; however, some group differences have been documented” (Henry et al., 2020).

While over the past two decades there have been advances in equality and human rights it is also important to acknowledge that there are areas that still have some work to go. Being understanding and respectful of an individual’s differences and identities “should” be the norm and not hinder how other people care for one another.

The pride day celebration is a day where people acknowledge and support the LGBTQ community. “The word ‘pride’ is an integral cultural concept within the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex (LGBTQI) community, representing solidarity, collectivity, and identity as well as resistance to discrimination and violence… Its associated symbolism (e.g., rainbow colors) communicates to individuals that LGBTQI members are welcome as valuable members of the community” (UCSF).

This celebratory day was marked on June 26th, 2003 when same-sex relationships were decriminalized in the United States from a Supreme Court ruling. The battle for rights for this community has started long before this date, however, and same-sex marriage is still being fought for in certain states. Discrimination is unfortunately still prevalent within certain fields, locations, and communities.

In the healthcare field, there is currently training and protocol that is being implemented by some providers or foundations. “While some providers may be LGBTQ friendly, they might not be knowledgeable of the specific health needs of LGBTQ patients, further emphasizing the need for competency; thankfully, more US academic health centers have implemented LGBTQ competency training” states a research study by Jann et al., 2015.

In another study looking at LGBTQ people and access to the health care they looked at health insurance and socioeconomic status along with other key factors of access to care, “LGBTQ people in this study reportedly having access to health care facilities and insurance, a substantial proportion still experienced barriers in being able to utilize health services” (Henry et al., 2020).

These reports show that there is a need for more understanding and available resources to help support all people regardless of high or low access to care. In a study looking at how to find helpful solutions for medical care and health and wellness fields, it was stated that “by first acknowledging the unique health and social care needs of LGBTQ people, then employing anti-oppressive, critical and intersectional analyses we offer recommendations for how to make population health perspectives, public health goals, and the design of public health promotion policy more inclusive of gender and sexual diversity” (Mulé et al., 2009).

Changing policies is something that every citizen can help to support by voting and supporting active movements as well as companies or foundations that are inclusive of equality and human rights. Some ways that people have chosen to support others are by bringing their points of view into the conversation, work environments, showing support to LGBTQ businesses, and donating to certain non-profits that directly support people.

Another way to help support human rights is to show compassion and respect directly to the people in your life. “Self-esteem was positively associated with engagement in wellness behaviors and — aside from age — represented the strongest relationship among all predictors, which supports previous work showing that higher self-esteem is related to positive health behaviors, psychosocial health, and well-being in health” (Henry et al., 2020). If people are being treated well, cared for, and feel comfortable in their environment and with those who surround them, they have a higher chance of feeling good just as they are. “The present study, in conjunction with previous work, suggests that feelings of self-worth among individuals may be a crucial factor in determining engagement in wellness and health-promoting behaviors” (Henry et al., 2020).

Recognizing and cultivating self-esteem and self-worth can be a challenging process for each person. Some have found that positive affirmations, physical activity, positive social activity, and self-care have been beneficial in building up self-esteem habits. “Healthy self-esteem has been described as holding a balanced view of oneself in which one recognizes and accepts human weaknesses and appreciates one’s strengths and good qualities” (Hagen et al., 2020). Appreciating oneself and feeling proud of the person you are is an amazing quality that can also be practiced. Pride is a day for love, appreciation, and celebration of rights for the LGBTQ community.

Overall Tips

• Practice being mindful of your own thoughts or words, are these words coming from a place of support and care for other people?
• Practice kind questions, if you are curious or unsure how to address someone, find a kind respectful way to ask how they would like to be referred to rather than assuming.
• Bring up to other people your support for human rights movements and respect for all people.
• Voting can change policies.
• Treat all people with compassion and genuine kindness.

For more topics related to overall health and well-being, check out the Ate app!

References

Hagen, R., Havnen, A., Hjemdal, O., Kennair, L., Ryum, T., & Solem, S. (2020). Protective and Vulnerability Factors in Self-Esteem: The Role of Metacognitions, Brooding, and Resilience. Frontiers in psychology, 11, 1447. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01447

Henry, R. S., Perrin, P. B., Sawyer, A., & Pugh, M., Jr (2020). Health Conditions, Access to Care, Mental Health, and Wellness Behaviors in Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Adults. International journal of chronic diseases, 2020, 9094047. https://doi.org/10.1155/2020/9094047

Jann, J. T., Edmiston, E. K., & Ehrenfeld, J. M. (2015). Important Considerations for Addressing LGBT Health Care Competency. American journal of public health, 105(11), e8. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2015.302864

Mulé, N. J., Ross, L. E., Deeprose, B., Jackson, B. E., Daley, A., Travers, A., & Moore, D. (2009). Promoting LGBT health and wellbeing through inclusive policy development. International journal for equity in health, 8, 18. https://doi.org/10.1186/1475-9276-8-18