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How to look after your mental health as a member of the trans community

How to look after your mental health as a member of the trans community

13/11/2024

Transgender people in England are five times more likely to have a long-term mental health condition than cisgender people, according to research by Manchester University, The Proud Trust and LGBT Foundation.

Looking after your wellbeing is important, but we know it’s not always that simple. Here are ten ways transgender people can maintain their mental health.

Find a support network

Talking to people who understand about trans issues is so important for our mental health. These may be family, friends and allies. It can also be helpful to talk to other trans people, or get involved in trans support groups, as it helps provide a sense of community and understanding.

Recognising when it’s all starting to get a bit ‘too-much’

We all have different tolerance levels depending on what’s happening in our lives. It can help to use a tool such as Mental Health UK’s stress bucket to recognise how much stress we are experiencing. Remember that external stress such as discrimination and hate speech adds stress to our individual stress buckets.

Practice self-care

As our stress bucket fills, we need to try and empty it. This is where self-care comes in. Find what works for you. Think about things that feed your soul and bring you joy. This might be doing something creative like cooking or writing poetry. Or it could be going for a walk, playing with a pet or tinkering with the car. The list is endless.

There is a myth that identifying as transgender is easy, you just say it and “hey presto!”, magic happens and that’s it. The reality for trans people is very different.

Address gender dysphoria

If you experience gender dysphoria you might want to consider expressing your feelings through art, journaling or speaking to a gender affirming therapist. You may want to consider gender self-expression or talking to your GP about hormone therapy or gender-affirming surgery.

Learn about trans issues

Knowledge is power. Increasing our awareness of trans issues helps us to become more resilient and helps us to advocate for ourselves. A good start can be our information on LGBT+ mental health.

Setting boundaries

We all need boundaries. And when it seems that the world disapproves of who we are, we need them even more. It’s OK to turn off the tv, not read the news or not engage with someone we find triggering or unsupportive. Recognise that you are worthy of respect and understanding.

Give it time

Self growth and healing take time, it’s a long and slow journey sometimes. Give yourself time for a relationship with yourself to develop and remember that there will always be time in the future if you don’t feel like doing anything right now.

I would say to anyone who is trans and experiencing poor mental health to try to put your fear aside and reach out, don’t hide within yourself, you are enough, and you are not alone, there are kind people out there.

Think about your relationship with yourself

The most important relationship we all have in our lives is the one we have with ourselves. Remember that lots of people in the community feel a lot of internalised stigma around themselves or their identity. It’s not your fault, you are not to blame, but it can be really healing to start to identify what stigma you are holding onto, and how that is affecting your relationship with yourself.

Find supporting stories

There are so many amazing books, podcasts and social media channels out there that will help you to feel seen, validated and like you make sense. Explore and find what works for you.

Find your community

There are a lot of great groups, meets, crafting circles, walking groups, dance groups, networks etc. out there. Finding a community of people who get what you are experiencing is really important.