It’s National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, and a new report highlights a population at high risk for suicide: LGB youth. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report includes data showing that 43% of LGB students in grades 9-12 seriously considered suicide, 38% made a suicide plan, and nearly 30% attempted suicide.
This survey is especially significant because it is unique. It is the first nationally representative sample of LGB youth regarding suicide and other health risks.
We know much less about transgendered youth, as the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Survey (YRBS), from which the CDC data is collected, does not ask for information about gender identity.
Learn more about the CDC report:
- CDC’S 2015 YRBS Displays Significant Data on Youth Suicide (The Trevor Project)
- Queer teens are four times more likely to commit suicide, CDC reports (The Verge)
- The Scariest Part About America’s LGBTQ Suicide Epidemic Is What We Don’t Know About It (Vice)
Take action:
Share national and local LGBTQI mental health and suicide prevention resources with your community, including:
- Trevor Project Lifeline
- Trans Lifeline
- Share information about the forthcoming Transgender Mental Health Survey (Trans Lifeline)
- Trevor Project Advocacy Page
- Alameda County LGBTQI resource page