lgbt community healthcare

Healthcare Essentials for the LGBT Community

It’s time to talk about your body, and we don’t mean your muscles or your curves. It’s like your mom always told you, it’s what’s inside that counts. Although, she probably wasn’t talking about your cholesterol, glucose, and hormone levels. But we are. It’s time for everyone’s favorite subject—healthcare. We’re talking to you if:

  • You’re finally on the Obamacare bandwagon
  • You got married and your partner has good health insurance
  • You have insurance but you haven’t been to the doctor in a long time

We won’t get all scoldy with you about going to the doctor. No one likes it, but it’s the price we pay to play. You know you have to take care of yourself. So, let’s get doctoring.

Like your mom always told you, it’s what’s inside that counts. #LGBTHealth Click To Tweet

LGBT Community, Why We Don’t Take Care

We’re definitely not making a blanket statement about the whole LGBTQ / LGBT community, but there is some academic research to back up why a percentage of us don’t take care. The top two reasons:

  1. We weren’t taught to properly care for ourselves because of parental rejection
  2. Stress from lack of acceptance led to risk-taking behavior not conducive to good health

Put those two risk factors together and you’ve got a deadly (literally) combination. But these roadblocks are surmountable. You can learn to take better care of yourself, and we’re here to support you.

If you fall into the category of people in the LGBTQ / LGBT community who takes care, then take a minute to pass this along to your friends who might have slipped through the cracks.

Family rejection and #LGBTQ minority stress can lead to risk-taking behaviors. Click To Tweet

Healthcare Basics for the LGBT Community

Assuming all is well with you physically, you still need to find a primary care provider and get an annual checkup. (If you’re having a problem, find someone today.) Everyone needs a primary care doctor who will monitor:

  • Heart rate, breathing, blood pressure, and weight
  • Physical condition including your pallor, reflexes, ears, nose, and throat
  • Blood and urine to check that all levels and counts are normal

You can also take this time to talk to your doctor about any special concerns or problems you’ve been having. Don’t leave anything out, particularly about your family history of cancer, heart disease, and diabetes. It might be nothing, it’s probably nothing, but you never know.

Men: Your primary care provider will conduct a testicular and hernia exam. You will also need to get your prostate checked (the earlier, the better), particularly if you have a family history of prostate cancer.

Women: You’ll need to go annually to a gynecologist for a pap smear. Between the ages of 40 and 50, depending on your history, you’ll need to get regular mammograms.

Men & Women: You’ll need to check for colon cancer annually starting at age 50.

Report on your lifestyle whether it includes heavy workouts and a keto diet or risk-taking behavior like drug use or unprotected sex. The full picture of you is the best way for a practitioner to help.

Finding a Gay-Friendly Healthcare Practitioner

Ask around in your LGBT community to find a doctor you can trust and be open with. You don’t ever have to explain your choices to your doctor or be made to feel ashamed. The practitioner you choose works for you. Yes, doctors are experts on the human body and will give you advice on how to live your life for optimal health. But they are also service providers who depend on you for their livelihood, so if your doctor makes you uncomfortable, change doctors.

Great LGBTQ-friendly doctors are out there. Check our directory for recommendations, and please let us know if you have a doctor to include.

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