Kathmandu (Pahichan) April 14 – As someone who has often had to retreat into safe spaces during difficult times, I know their true value.
\nThe importance of having such a space is vital \u2013 as I\u2019m sure anyone else who\u2019s felt vulnerable or not understood can testify.\u00a0 Some of us are in phases of our lives where we need spaces so we can be ourselves \u2013 somewhere we can feel supported and recognised. However, for many transgender people and LGBTI people in general, the Covid-19 lockdown has caused a real disruption in being able to seek that support.
\nA lot of LGBTI life is focused around social gatherings \u2013 support groups, LGBTI centres, clubs or other spaces that people seek out to feel safe and be with people who don\u2019t judge them for who they are.
\nHaving that suddenly taken away, especially if you use them regularly, can be really frightening. This doesn\u2019t only apply to LGBTI people, but anyone who needs support. People who are in abusive relationships can suddenly be even more isolated and trapped.
\nYoung people in particular can be vulnerable, especially those who seek help from peer-to-peer groups. They are no longer able to meet with their friends and might even be stuck with families that don\u2019t fully accept them.
\nBeing LGBTI and trapped somewhere you feel you can\u2019t express yourself is really terrifying. I know \u2013 I grew up in a rural place in northern Iceland and I remember feeling so utterly cut-off in my situation, being unable to tell anyone out of shame of who I was, and fear of how I\u2019d be received.
\nThere wasn\u2019t anywhere I could go but, thankfully, towards my late teenage years, I was able to find support online. If it hadn\u2019t been for the internet, computer games and the amazing support from close friends I don\u2019t know what would\u2019ve happened to me.
\nThat\u2019s why it\u2019s so incredibly important to check on those around you, because people have less access to meet up in the physical world and seek out those spaces. We are all struggling with this situation in one way or the other, but being afraid to be at home during this pandemic makes things really stressful and anxiety inducing.
\nIt\u2019s horrifying that there are people right now being subjected to discrimination and even violence every single day without a place to escape to.
\nBeing in such a hopeless situation can have really adverse effects on a person\u2019s mental health, and can be undeniably taxing on top of what is already a pressured and difficult situation. In severe cases, I imagine, it\u2019s even caused people to find themselves homeless in the middle of a global pandemic.
\nBut thankfully we are living in a time where it\u2019s possible to stay connected remotely. Even though we might not be able to see physical contact and comfort with others, we can still pick up the phone, text, offer a friendly voice to someone.
\nWe can share resources online and let people know where they can get the help they need. People could be struggling without you knowing, so make sure you remind them that you\u2019re there to support those that need it.
\nMany LGBTI groups are already offering online spaces for people to talk and meet, including phone counselling and remote support. Many are hosting online events and drop ins, such as a local trans group in Brighton called The Clare Project, and there is an array of films, shows and art that you can now access online to feel inspired, understood and validated.
\nThere is also a wonderful amount of LGBTI books that have been released in the past few years that offer support to those in need. In 2018 myself and my partner released the Trans Teen Survival Guide, which gives advice to transgender teens and their families. It\u2019s been really well received and has made so many people feel listened to, affirmed and inspired.
\nNow is also the perfect time to binge watch all of those series you\u2019ve been holding off on without feeling guilty about it, such as Pose, Tales of the City or the The L Word: Generation Q. Maybe dust off that old console you have stashed away and get out some old games \u2013 or get a brand new one! Some of my all time favourite games to get lost in are the Dragon Age series, Mass Effect Series and Ori and the Blind Forest.
\nTo help me get through this perplexing time, I bought a box of flowers and plants online that I\u2019m going to be tending to for the next few weeks, and have been connecting with old friends and having a lot more phone conversations. I\u2019m also doing more yoga and going for walks, while social distancing from others \u2013 even dogs that I am desperate to pet!
\nI know that things might seem tough right now, but this too will pass.
\nThere are many things we can do to feel supported or escape what\u2019s around us, and I encourage you all to get creative, ask for help if you need it and tend to yourself and your mental health. You might not realise it right now, but there are so many people who can and will support you during this time.<\/p>\n
And you might be surprised \u2014 your family could be a lot more accepting than you think and for some people, this could be a perfect time for you to connect with them as your authentic self. This was certainly my experience, as my parents have always been incredibly supportive of me despite living in a rural, conservative community in Iceland.
\nThere\u2019s no one right way to come out to your family, so you just have to do what feels right for you. I wrote a letter to my parents that I gave to them and told them to read, have a think about and then come talk to me. It worked quite well, and gave them time to reflect on it and read some information before we had the talk.
\nBut regardless of your situation, it\u2019s important to remember that you\u2019re not alone. There is still a community out there that can support you \u2014 albeit remotely for now \u2014 but we\u2019re here. So don\u2019t feel afraid to reach out if you\u2019re struggling.
\nIf you\u2019re in a position to support others or want to be an ally, make it your goal today to reach out to someone and check in on them.
\nYou don\u2019t always know who might be struggling for whatever reason, so it\u2019s important to keep in touch with people during these times. They might appreciate it more than you can imagine.<\/p>\n
Source : https:\/\/metro.co.uk<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Kathmandu (Pahichan) April 14 – As someone who has often had to retreat into safe spaces during difficult times, I know their true value.
\nThe importance of having such a space is vital \u2013 as I\u2019m sure anyone else who\u2019s felt vulnerable or not understood can testify.\u00a0 Some of us are in phases of our lives where we need spaces so we can be ourselves \u2013 somewhere we can feel supported and recognised. However, for many transgender people and LGBTI people in general, the Covid-19 lockdown has caused a real disruption …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":44,"featured_media":12506,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[20,10,621,492,490,11],"tags":[502,458],"class_list":["post-12505","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-current-issue","category-health","category-news","category-opinion","category-slider","category-world","tag-lgbti","tag-transgender"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pahichan.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12505","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pahichan.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pahichan.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pahichan.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/44"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pahichan.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12505"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/pahichan.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12505\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12508,"href":"https:\/\/pahichan.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12505\/revisions\/12508"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pahichan.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12506"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pahichan.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12505"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pahichan.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12505"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pahichan.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12505"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}