As rainbow streamers fill the air andLGBTQrepresentation fills the streets, June is a time to celebrate LGBTQ identity and the contributions of the queer movement. Pride is a joyful time for the LGBTQ community and allies alike. It’s also a time to reaffirm our commitment to creating a more equal world. That’s why thisPride, we invite allies and supporters of the LGBTQ community — which should be everyone! — to show up for the mental health and wellbeing of their LGBTQ loved ones and the community at large.

While in the past, psychologists considered gay, lesbian, bisexual, queer, and trans identity to be a mental illness, today’s professional standards recognize queer identity as normal and healthy. However, the LGBTQ community continues to face devastatingly high rates of mental illness, including elevated rates ofdepression,substance abuse, andsuicide. Harassment is also common, with 65% of LGBTQ peoplereportedlyexperiencing some form of anti-LGBTQ harassment or discrimination in 2016.

Transgender people face a particularly heavy burden, withincreased ratesof harassment resulting in a staggering40 percent of transgender peoplewho have reported attempting suicide. These mental health struggles are due in large part to the effects ofdiscrimination.

1. Question your Biases

While you love your LGBTQ friends and family, and support LGBTQ rights, we all haveimplicit biasesthat can cause us to act in a discriminatory manner without being aware of it. To support the LGBTQ people in your life, first work on yourself.

Learn about LGBTQ identities, the LGBTQ movement, and the issues facing the LGBTQ community. Question your own assumptions about love, sex, and what it means to be part of a relationship or a family. It’s okay to have questions or make mistakes as part of the learning process. By educating yourself first, you can acknowledge these mistakes and grow from them to better support your loved ones.

2. Respect Their Identity

Research has found that affirming LGBTQ people’s identities can actually save their lives. For example,transgenderyouth whose community uses their personally chosen names have areduced suicide risk.

3. Don’t “Out” Them Without Their Permission

Navigating when to be “out” about one’s sexual orientation or gender identity is a highly personal choice. There are lots of reasons an LGBTQ person might choose to be out in some contexts and not as open in others.

4. Have Their Back

If your relative is queer, you can educate other family members on LGBTQ identity, and support them if they’re faced with discrimination from family members. In the workplace or educational space, you can advocate for diversity trainings and gender neutral bathrooms. And anywhere you go, you can call out anti-LGBTQ words and actions when you see them.

5. Support Them in Accessing Mental Health Resources

Everyone needs support, whether it’s a friend whose shoulder we can lean on or a therapist to help us work through trauma from our past. Supporting the mental health of your LGBTQ loved ones requires all the conventional skills of being a good friend: be present, make sure they know you are there for them, and don’t hesitate to reach out if you notice they’re going through a hard time.

There are also extra ways you can support your LGBTQ loved ones. You canhelp them findLGBTQ-friendlytherapists, whether brick and mortar, oronline therapists, connect them with LGBTQ support groups or mentors, and let them know they can always call you or any of the LGBTQ-friendly mental health hotlines (listed below) if they need help.

6. Donate, Donate, Donate!

Are you an LGBTQIA+ or questioning person in distress? Reach out. The below numbers are confidential, LGBTQIA-friendly hotlines dedicated to helping people just like you.

The Trevor Project: 866-488-7386

Trans Lifeline:877-565-8860

LGBTQ National Help Center: 1-888-843-4564

LGBT National Youth Talkline:800-246-7743 (youth serving youth, through age 25)

LGBT National Senior Hotline: 888-234-7243

LGBT National Coming Out Support Hotline:888-688-5428

Our goal at Talkspace is to provide the most up-to-date, valuable, and objective information on mental health-related topics in order to help readers make informed decisions.

Articles contain trusted third-party sources that are either directly linked to in the text or listed at the bottom to take readers directly to the source.

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