Homosexuals & Mental Health

[Kulturkampf]

Doctors have found tremendous information pertinent to homosexuals and their mental status which could imply deeper notions about homosexuality. One question for everyone to discuss is:

If homosexuality is coupled with mental issues so much, is homosexuality a form of an identity crisis that could cause these issues?

Question: Just how prevalent is mental disease amongst homosexuals?

"More than a quarter of homosexual men and a third of homosexual women admitted that they had deliberately tried to injure themselves. "

"One important and carefully conducted study found suicide attempts among homosexuals were six times greater than the average (Remafedi et al. 1998)."

"43% of a bulimic sample of men were homosexual or bisexual (Carlat et al. 1997), a rate about 15 times higher than the rate in the population in general--meaning homosexual men are probably disproportionately liable to this mental condition."

"Gay men and lesbians reported more psychological distress than heterosexual women, despite similar levels of social support and quality of physical health," the researchers reported (p. 556)."

"Gay men were almost ten percentage points more apt to suffer mental disorder (44% to 35%) than heterosexuals, with almost the same relative rate for lesbians compared to straight women (44% to 34%)."

"Concerning drug use, 52% of homosexual men and 44% of lesbian women reported such activity within a 30-day period preceding their interview, as contrasted with 45% and 33% of the straight men and women, respectively."

"Alcoholism is a fatal chronic illness affecting the lives of 20-30% of the homosexual population. Studies have found that 35% of lesbians had a history of excessive drinking, compared to only 5% of the heterosexual women. In addition, further studies have shown that 30% of lesbians and gay men are addicted to drugs, suggesting that the gay and lesbian community constitutes a high-risk population with regard to alcoholism and drug abuse."

Question: Could homosexuality have to do with an identity crisis?

In a study that used 505 heterosexual males, 656 homosexual men, 588 heterosexual women, 43 homosexual females, 85 bisexual men, and 113 bisexual women, "63 homosexual men and 14 homosexual women had considered seeking help to change their sexual orientation. Of these, 15 men and 2 women had achieved a change in their sexual orientation."

I could not find other information on it, because I do not think that large studies have ever been conducted.

But there are a plentiful amount of cases suggesting that it is possible to change your oreitnation sexually and completely, and what we can cnclude from that is up to you.

Question: Is there anything basic that separates homosexual mentality from normal people's mentality?

"One study (Riess, 1980) used the MMPI, that venerable and well-validated psychological scale, and found that homosexuals showed definite "personal and emotional oversensitivity."

Conclusion: Homosexuals re much more inclined to mental instability, and perhaps it is even rooted in a more profound question they have concerning identity. The causes are unclear, but regardless of reason, it is present in the society.

[Immortal Goat]

And if you were part of a minority that is constantly scrutinized and blatantly hated by your own country, you would be all sunshine and roses? Please. when you said you were going to make a thread about this, I at least thought it would be a compelling read. Try harder next time.

[sadie]

i am of the opinion that most, if not all, so-called "normal" people also have varying degrees of mental disorder.

[Emu]

They do. Everyone has a dirty little secret.

Also, Goat has a point. If there's any increased incidence of mental disroder among homosexuals, it probably stems more from their peer and family reception OF the homosexuality, and not the homosexuality in and of itself. Nearly all of the studies you posted seemed to cite diseases and disorders that are common to people with identity crises (which many homosexuals experience, once again, because of society's attitude toward homosexuals rather than the homosexuality itself. In societies where being gay is the same as being straight, these problems don't occur.)

edit

"One study (Riess, 1980) used the MMPI, that venerable and well-validated psychological scale, and found that homosexuals showed definite "personal and emotional oversensitivity."

Woah, woah, woah, there. Since when is the MMPI "venerable and well-validated?" Most of my psychology teachers won't take MMPIs with more than a grain of salt.

[kahljorn]

Hilarious.
I love things like this.

[Kulturkampf]

Look at the dates on a lot of the sources; in the eighties. These people were probably so far in the closet that no one knew of their behavior and thus persecution was not evident, yet still they lead suicidal lifestyles.

Their mental health and chemical dependency, regardless of cause, is no good for raising kids.

If you do not find it compelling, it does not concern me; I simply express the way I feel.

[AChimp]

Originally Posted by Kulturkampf

Look at the dates on a lot of the sources; in the eighties. These people were probably so far in the closet that no one knew of their behavior and thus persecution was not evident, yet still they lead suicidal lifestyles.

Yeah, except they hid who they truly were and bottling up your emotions causes even more problems in the long run.

In conclusion, you are probably a closet homo yourself.

[KevinTheOmnivore]

Forgive me for being lazy, but was this a survey of simply American homosexuals, or is the data a reflection of global trends?

I think it's a fair point that you may find fewer cases of this behavior in countries that may have had longer standing, more liberal laws on homosexual marriage and behavior.

[Kulturkampf]

Some of the sources were Dutch, I remember reading; so I do know it is global, though I would not be surprised if it was more American oriented.

And why would I be a closet homosexual? Sounds like more internet accusations.

[Big Papa Goat]

Also, negroes are naturally predisposed to violence, and jews have a genetic tendency to control the entire world.

[Chojin]

Fascinating! Maybe you can do poor people next!

[carnage]

So they think that someone has to have a mental diffincincy or be suffering an idenaty crisis to be gay wow this so called greatest country in the world has to be one of the most racist and prejudice country out there.

[Spectre X]

Originally Posted by Kulturkampf

Some of the sources were Dutch, I remember reading; so I do know it is global, though I would not be surprised if it was more American oriented.

And why would I be a closet homosexual? Sounds like more internet accusations.

Don't go blaming your idiocy on us Dutch now you filthy xenophobe!

[Kulturkampf]

And typical of the Left Wing:

When an argument is made contrary to their beliefs, they accuse the person of being a xenophobe, a racist, and unsympathetic towards the poor (three different folks!) when we are talking about a serious issue of homosexuality.

I would debate you, but there is NO CONTENT to what you are saying.

Come back when you grow up and learn how to argue.

Are you so ignorant you think you can show up with that kind of crud in place of an argument and make a point?

Let's dicuss this.

[Pub Lover]

No, let's discuss you being a cunt.

[Kulturkampf]

Originally Posted by Pub Lover

No, let's discuss you being a cunt.

Perfect.

I say: "Let's have ana ctual debate, an actual dicussion about it as opposed to name calling and off-the-topic verbal abuse."

Reaction:
"Noooo! You're a cunt."

Sounds like a great argument in your defense.

I'll have to remember it for the next time we argue.

[glowbelly]

http://www.psych.org/psych_pract/cop...endum83100.cfm

1. i am a woman who has had sex with other women
2. i am a woman who has done loads of drugs in the past
3. i am a woman who had a huge problem with alcohol
4. i am a woman who has been diagnosed with mental problems
5. i am currently on medicine for said mental problems
6. i no longer drink
7. i no longer do drugs
8. i am married to a wonderful man and am raising a beautiful son

your arguments might hold a little more weight if you tried citing sources that weren't so completely anti-gay and deeply rooted in religious belief.

this is as far as i will go with you. there is no reason to argue semantics with a bigot. if you think that gay people are bad, then you don't know enough of them. deviancy is prevalent in all sexual behavior.

get over it.

[sadie]

well said.

i was raised to believe that all homosexuals were sick in the head, mixed up, that they'd simply gone over to the dark side. i was probably 19 before i realized i'd been scammed. it took me at least ten years after that to finally come to terms with the homosexual experiences i'd had as a little girl, with the guilt i'd coated myself in to keep hidden my secret "sins." i had been so sure for so long that i was going to hell.

[mburbank]

Kultucrap;

No one wants to talk to you because you write like an idiot. You put sentences together like a blind butcher making Head Cheese and telling himself it's Fois Gras.

Add to that your positioning yourself quite deliberately and solely for negative attention and then whining when no one wants to take up your 'debate'.

You do not cut the mustard. You are not up to scratch. Everyone one here is more than willing to toss around ideas with anyone from any point of view, but no one here wants to spar with a cretin. Fuck off.

[kahljorn]

"Their mental health and chemical dependency, regardless of cause, is no good for raising kids. "

Yea. I agree entirely, those fucking bastards. They will fuck kids up so bad! I've never met a straight person who does drugs. Obviously the war on drugs is a war on FAGS. I've never met a gay person who wasn't "dependent" on chemicals. I mean, straight people are so awesome. How do they manage to be so great?
I've heard that, in many cases, once a gay man becomes straight he gives up all drugs and stuff.

Also straight people don't drink coca-cola and they only eat organically, no chemicals for them! From what I understand they don't even have seratonin or melatonin in their brains! Those straight people sure are a wonder of evolution, good thing gays weren't having children and fucking up the gene pool eh?

"Look at the dates on a lot of the sources; in the eighties. These people were probably so far in the closet that no one knew of their behavior and thus persecution was not evident"

Yea, because nobody was openly gay in the 80's. Gay people are obviously a creation of the 90's. What were we thinking? HOW DID WE MANAGE TO SCREW THINGS UP SO BAD?

" I simply express the way I feel."

You're the only free-spirit left in this world of fags and homosexuals.


Seriously though, I've never met a crazy straight person in my entire life, and let me tell you, I've been in alot of mental institutions! They were all gay! You're totally correct on this issue.

Hey did you hear the greek civilization often had sex with men? In fact, that kinds of stuff has been around for ages. No wonder the greek civilization failed, eh? It's leaders were a bunch of crazy queers! God bless america.

[Emu]

Even if we're willing to allow that there is a higher rate of mental disorder among homosexuals, that still indicates nothing. The first rule of clinical statistics is that correlation DOES NOT EQUAL causation.

Also, all of the sources you cited are heavily biased and mostly religious. The source you chose closest to a scientific one is NARTH, the National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality. Their name alone should start ringing bells of bias. Also, according to Wikipedia,

Theories of thereputic methods for changing sexual bias are not endorsed by most professional mental health organizations, such as the American Psychiatric Association and American Psychological Association, anymore.

The Human Rights Campaign issued a press release that in 1999 NARTH President, Charles Socarides, had "run into trouble with the American Psychoanalytic Association (APsaA), of which he is a member. According to a letter from Dr. Ralph Roughton of the APsaA, Socarides misrepresented the position of the APsaA in a published paper and a court affidavit. Socarides attempted to make it appear that the APsaA agrees with his positions on homosexuality. He did this by quoting an APsaA document written in 1968, which supported his views and which he called the "official position" of the APsaA, while ignoring a 1990 revised statement that drastically contradicted his views. The Executive Committee of the APsaA instructed the organization's attorney to write a letter to Socarides asking him to cease this misrepresentation and threatening legal action if he continued. Additionally, the APsaA newsletter decided to stop printing advertisements for NARTH meetings because the organization does not adhere to APsaA's policy of non-discrimination and because their activities are demeaning to our members who are gay and lesbian, according to Roughton."

On May 17, 1997 NARTH published the results of a two year study involving 860 clients and 200 psychologists and therapists. Mainstream psychological associations called the study "heavily biased", because each of the therapists supplied data only on their "success stories". The organization did not report their success rate at converting patients with a homosexual orientation to a heterosexual orientation. They did not make distinction between homosexuals and bisexuals in the program. And did not differentiate between homosexuals, bisexuals and heterosexuals among those leaving. This study has not been accepted to be published in a peer-reviewed medical journal.

All of your sources are moot.

[kahljorn]

I don't know, I personally found it hilarious that he believed that shit. The internet is such a great thing, idiots can find all kinds of bullshit information to base their ideas off of.

[Ant10708]

Should you really use Wikipedia as an accurate source when mocking other peoples less accurate soruces? Aren't the entires in Wikipedia just submitted by normal people with no real check up on the facts? I didn't even read the quote from Wikipedia I just thinks its funny to cite them as a source when mocking other unreliable sources.

All these studies on homosexuals are a waste of time but it isn't really worth getting angry over.

Carnage has the best post in the thread. I love blaming the entire country of the United States on everything too

[kahljorn]

The bottom of most wikipedia pages have referances.

I think some of the people who post on wikipedia are doctors and such. I have a doctor friend who uses them as a credible source when teaching other people. I don't know if that really speaks for the validity of all of the pages on there, but it should at least clarify that some of the entries are accurate.

[ziggytrix]

Wikipedia has a sort of peer review process for its articles.