Cabán asks DOHMH about protective factors for TGNB youth mental health

Thank you.

I really appreciate that.

And just to underscore that this is something that's not unique across the board in that sense.

There are tons of people who are being denied access to mental health care for a number of reasons, again, at the hands of the federal government and the distress that

that causes, I am somebody who lives with a chronic health condition and the period of time it took to get a diagnosis and the difficulty of being seen and heard and really taken seriously and treated was,

it was a really, really difficult time as

an adult with access to consistent mental health care.

And still, I struggled immensely.

And so I cannot imagine what young folks are struggling with when they're not sure where they can get their care.

I have a couple more questions and I'm going to hand it over to my co-chair.

But beyond medical care, what does DOHMH understand to be the most important protective factors for TGNB youth mental health?

Just as examples, such as family acceptance, affirming schools, community connection, things like that.

Yep.

There are many protective factors, and I'd say the most widely protective factor is connectedness to parents.

So family support and affirmation is absolutely critical as a protective factor.

Others include connectedness to other, you know, adults, caring adults, adult relatives, adults in the community,

peers and friends, teachers, youth development opportunities, and feeling safe in the community.

Those were all protective factors.

And I'm looking at, and that goes for, you know, transgender, genderqueer, genderfluid, questioning youth.

And these were protective factors against depression, suicidality, and substance use.