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Mental Health
Our mental health is just as important to our well-being as our phyiscal health. Stress and isolation can be damaging to our mental health and we all need support during the good times and the bad times. Talking to others about how you feel and sharing problems is good for your mental health.
Good mental health means you can cope with the normal stresses of life, you realise your abilities, you can work productively and you are able to make a contribution to your community. Your mental health is an important part of you; it's an important part of everyone. It's about how we see ourselves and those around us - our family, our friends, classmates and colleague - people we see every day. When our mental health is good we can enjoy day to day life, we feel good about ourselves and we can get the best out of things. Good mental health also helps us deal with problems and tough times in our lives. Negative life experiences can be stressful and this stress can affect our mental health. Certain experiences, like homophobia and transphobia, can lead to additional stress for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people that can also have a negative impact on their mental health.
Despite the progress in Irish society in recent years, LGBT people still can experience significant degree of prejudice and harassment and this can lead to poor mental health and well-being. LGBT people of all ages can still experience difficulties ‘coming out' such as fear of rejection. They can also experience hostile attitudes and behaviour in school, in the workplace, when accessing services and in their local areas, all of which can have a detrimental impact on their mental health and well-being. To help people deal with this, LGBT people need support, which is available from helplines, LGBT organisations and mainstream support services. The booklet Look After Yourself, Look After Your Mental Health - Information for LGBT People, offers guidance on how LGBT people can mind their mental health and where they can get support. The key message of the booklet is that we all need support and it is perfectly normal to ask for help when you need it. Click here to download a copy of this booklet.
Mental Health Support Services - help is out there
The services listed below have a lot of experience in helping people to overcome their problems. If you would like to talk to someone in confidence, they can help. Please note: this is not a complete list of support services. Your local HSE Health Office will be able to provide a more detailed guide to support services available in your area. Call 1850 24 1850 or log onto www.hse.ie for contact details. Remember that your GP is an option for any mental health questions or concerns you might have.
Samaritans - 24 hours service - 1850 60 90 90, www.dublinsamaritans.ie
Childline - 24 hours service - 1800 66 66 66, www.childline.ie
Teenline - 8pm - midnight - 1800 833 634, www.teenline.ie
Aware (Depression) 1890 303 302, www.aware.ie
Pieta House (Self-Harm/Suicide Support) 01-6010000, www.pieta.ie
Bodywhys (Eating Disorders) 1890 200 444, www.bodywhys.ie
Console (Suicide Bereavement Support) 1800 201 890, www.console.ie
Grow (Mental Health Support Groups) 1890 474 474, www.grow.ie
Alcoholics Anonymous www.alcoholicsanonymous.ie
Mental Health Crisis?
If you, or someone you know, is in crisis now and need someone to talk to:
· Contact your local doctor, listed under ‘General Practitioners’ in the Golden Pages or visit www.icgp.ie
· Go to, or contact, the Accident and Emergency Department of your nearest general hospital
· Contact the emergency services by calling 999 or 112
· Contact Samaritans on 1850 60 90 90 (Republic of Ireland) or 08457 909 090 (Northern Ireland)
Disclaimer - The information contained within these links are provided to give you acces to factual health information. However, the information may be from a country other than Ireland so please check with your GP or local HSE service for the Irish context as lgbt.ie cannot accept responsibility for information/content on external sites.