Gay Men Talking About Health

Abstract

Defining and describing health has traditionally been the role of medical experts. Although a rich literature has recently established the importance of lay accounts of health, one important gap relates to gay men's accounts of health. Data from 11 focus groups involving 45 gay men were thematically analyzed to investigate gay men's views of health. Two contrasting positions on a possible relationship between sexuality and health-there is no link or there is a definite link-were identified. In addition, five key ways gay men talked about health were identified: health is the absence of disease, is functional ability, is fitness and exercise, is psychological, and is multifaceted. Although there are similarities in the ways gay and other men talk about health, important differences exist, which suggest that issues of sexuality need to be considered by health policy and service planners so that responsive health services can be provided.

Mental health promotion for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and intersex New Zealanders

“…20 While some gay men have reported deliberately withholding information about their sexuality or not seeing any relationship between sexuality and health, others have reported wait-ing for an opportunity to disclose their sexuality to their GP. 21,22 In response to concern about mental health issues for GLBTI people, research was commissioned as part of the Ministry of Health's implementation of the New Zealand Suicide Prevention Action Plan 2008-2012. 23 The central aims of the research were to identify the current mental health promotion initiatives focused on GLBTI populations, as well as mental health services specifically for GLBTI people.…”

Resiliency and mental health and well-being among lesbian, gay and bisexual people

“…However, despite the existence of such difficulties, the aim of this article is to explicate a number of actions LGB actively and deliberately undertake to maintain and enhance their mental health and well-being. Our research contributes to understanding the views of LGB people about mental health and well-being (Adams, Braun, & McCreanor, 2012) and recognises that these lay views of LGB about health and well-being are not well articulated in the extant literature.…”

“Aren’t Labels for Pickle Jars, Not People?” Negotiating Identity and Community in Talk About ‘Being Gay’

“…However, in recent years there has been an increasing focus on examining health more broadly and particularly on the disparities between gay (and lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and queer) and the general population (Clarke, Ellis, Peel, & Riggs, 2010; Institute of Medicine, 2011; Meyer & Northridge, 2007). Increasingly seen as important to understanding health inequalities for gay men are approaches which incorporate the social determinants of health which recognizes that sexuality along with other determinants such as race/ethnicity, income and education mediate people’s experiences of health and illness (Adams, Braun, & McCreanor, 2012; Adams, McCreanor, & Braun, 2013).…”