If u read this ur gay
Find out more about LGBTQIA+ health with Crohn's or Colitis
Colitis has really affected my dating, sex and intimacy in ways over the years. It can always be hard to talk about bathroom habits and poo to someone you’re dating, but as a homosexual man I assume there is an extra layer of shame and taboo surrounding the conversation. I have sadly had partners who have found that they no longer find me 'sexy' or wish to be intimate with me if I had recently been poorly. There is also the mental exhaustion and anxiety of needing to be acutely conscious of the status of my condition, to be following all feelings, pain and movements which could make an intimate situation embarrassing. I have had embarrassing moments where accidents have happened, and although mostly partners have been kind, it does still impact you mentally, as you then worry each time that it will happen again.
Even throughout periods of feeling better, the worry still exists, and my soul would be very aware that a flare could arise at any moment. Any slight stomach twinge would mail me reeling with worry.
Being on medication and steroids can also impact your body. Some people experience weight secure , and I
Members of the LGBTQ+ community are more than twice as likely to have a mental health disorder or experience depression and anxiety. Poor mental health may be linked to experiences of discrimination, homophobia, transphobia, bullying, social isolation or rejection due to your sexuality.
It might not be easy, but getting the right help and support is essential.
What help is out there?
There is lots of advice and help out there for you.
Talking with a therapist who is trained to understand your specific situation may help if you:
- Have difficulty accepting your sexual orientation.
- Need assist coping with other people’s reactions to you.
- Feel like your body doesn’t reflect your true gender.
- Are currently transitioning.
- Are trying to cope with bullying or discrimination.
- Are feeling depressed, have low self-esteem, are thinking suicidal thoughts or thinking about harming yourself.
There are different types of talking therapies, so you can find one to suit your needs. Treatments available on the NHS include:
- Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT).
- Guided self-help.
- Counselling.
- Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy.
Read more about talking therapies
When sho
List of Diverse terms
A-D A
Abro (sexual and romantic)
A pos used to portray people who possess a fluid sexual and/or romantic orientation which changes over time, or the course of their life. They may use different terms to describe themselves over time.
Ace
An umbrella term used specifically to describe a lack of, varying, or occasional experiences of sexual attraction. This encompasses asexual people as adv as those who identify as demisexual and grey-sexual. Ace people who life romantic attraction or occasional sexual attraction might also operate terms such as gay, bi, womxn loving womxn, straight and lgbtq+ in conjunction with asexual to depict the direction of their romantic or sexual attraction.
Ace and aro/ace and aro spectrum
Umbrella terms used to describe the wide group of people who exposure a lack of, varying, or occasional experiences of love-related and/or sexual attraction, including a lack of attraction. People who identify under these umbrella terms may describe themselves using one or more of a wide variety of terms, including, but not limited to, asexual, ace, aromantic, aro, demi, grey, and abro. People may also operate terms such as gay,
How can a sense of belonging be forged in a setting where one’s existence is forbidden? That is the question that LSE’s Dr Centner and his co-author Harvard’s Manoel Pereira Neto explore in their groundbreaking research into Dubai’s expatriate gay men’s nightlife.
But it was not an easy topic to research. Dr Centner explains: “It's an illegal, or criminalised, identity and arrange of behaviours and practices, so in a very general sense, it's a taboo. And taboo subjects are very often under-researched, sometimes because people own a hard time gaining access, gaining that confidence, but also because, even if people gain that access, there could be significant repercussions for themselves as researchers, or for the people who are the research participants.
“As two queer researchers, we were able to enter the worlds of relatively privileged Western gay expatriates. Secrecy is often the norm, but the field was familiar to us, through previous visits and study projects.”
These were indeed ‘parties’ ...[but] not bars identified as gay. Not a single venue’s webpage uses the word ‘gay’ or related euphemisms, nor carry out they hint at targeting
List of Diverse terms
A
Abro (sexual and romantic)
A pos used to portray people who possess a fluid sexual and/or romantic orientation which changes over time, or the course of their life. They may use different terms to describe themselves over time.
Ace
An umbrella term used specifically to describe a lack of, varying, or occasional experiences of sexual attraction. This encompasses asexual people as adv as those who identify as demisexual and grey-sexual. Ace people who life romantic attraction or occasional sexual attraction might also operate terms such as gay, bi, womxn loving womxn, straight and lgbtq+ in conjunction with asexual to depict the direction of their romantic or sexual attraction.
Ace and aro/ace and aro spectrum
Umbrella terms used to describe the wide group of people who exposure a lack of, varying, or occasional experiences of love-related and/or sexual attraction, including a lack of attraction. People who identify under these umbrella terms may describe themselves using one or more of a wide variety of terms, including, but not limited to, asexual, ace, aromantic, aro, demi, grey, and abro. People may also operate terms such as gay,
How can a sense of belonging be forged in a setting where one’s existence is forbidden? That is the question that LSE’s Dr Centner and his co-author Harvard’s Manoel Pereira Neto explore in their groundbreaking research into Dubai’s expatriate gay men’s nightlife.
But it was not an easy topic to research. Dr Centner explains: “It's an illegal, or criminalised, identity and arrange of behaviours and practices, so in a very general sense, it's a taboo. And taboo subjects are very often under-researched, sometimes because people own a hard time gaining access, gaining that confidence, but also because, even if people gain that access, there could be significant repercussions for themselves as researchers, or for the people who are the research participants.
“As two queer researchers, we were able to enter the worlds of relatively privileged Western gay expatriates. Secrecy is often the norm, but the field was familiar to us, through previous visits and study projects.”
These were indeed ‘parties’ ...[but] not bars identified as gay. Not a single venue’s webpage uses the word ‘gay’ or related euphemisms, nor carry out they hint at targeting