Introduction to Special Issue: Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic on LGBTQ+ Health and Well-Being

Living in Uncertain Times: Pre-Pandemic Vulnerabilities as Predictors of Longitudinal Changes in Psychological Distress Across the First Two Waves of the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…Though the COVID-19 pandemic has created worldwide disruption in people's lives, certain vulnerable and marginalized groups have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic, including health care and essential workers, Black and indigenous persons, and those within LGBTQ+ communities (Curtice & Choo, 2020;Gibb et al, 2020;Paluszek et al, 2020;Rettie & Daniels, 2020;Ruiz & Gibson, 2020;Tai et al, 2021). Pre-pandemic health disparities, including disproportionately higher mental health problems or vulnerabilities, occurring within marginalized communities are likely to be exacerbated by the ongoing pandemic (Drabble & Eliason, 2021;Glenister et al, 2021). Our study did not examine mental health symptoms across time among these or other vulnerable, marginalized groups, limiting the generalizability of our findings to groups who might be most at risk for experiencing psychological distress during the pandemic.…”

Prevalence and associations of COVID-19 testing in an online sample of transgender and non-binary individuals

“…The impacts of COVID-19 may be widespread, but emerging evidence indicates that already marginalised communities have been disproportionately affected. 8 9 The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated existing health disparities and social inequities, largely along lines of race and ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and gender identity and sexual orientation. 8 10–12 Many structural barriers affect populations placed at social, economic and politic disadvantage, and who are seeking COVID-19 testing, vaccinations or treatment.…”

“… 8 9 The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated existing health disparities and social inequities, largely along lines of race and ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and gender identity and sexual orientation. 8 10–12 Many structural barriers affect populations placed at social, economic and politic disadvantage, and who are seeking COVID-19 testing, vaccinations or treatment. 11 13 While vaccinations against COVID-19 continue to be rolled out around the world, testing interventions remains a crucial step for minimising the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus; for some, however, access to testing remains elusive.…”

Out of the Closet and into Quarantine: Stories of Isolation and Teaching

“…The move to online teaching at home also left many queer students sheltered in place with unsupportive families or in situations in which they needed to repress or hide their identities (Fish et al 2020). As Drabble and Eliason (2021) suggest, the COVID-19 stay-at-home orders and the shutdowns of schools, social support organizations, and queer health service providers may have resulted in queer people being more vulnerable to loneliness and social isolation. Salerno et al (2020) note that many schools and community-based organizations have moved their support groups, mental health care services, and social activities on-line during the COVID-19 pandemic.…”

“…Such moves to online formats have been critical for many queer youths and individuals to feel safe to seek support, especially when the platforms used are synchronous and text-based (Fish et al 2020). Researchers have suggested, however, that many of these programs are at their capacity and overwhelmed by high numbers of people reaching out (Salerno et al 2020) and there are issues of internet connectivity for many queer people that limit their ability to access these services (Drabble and Eliason 2021).…”