Category: News
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DEPRESSION CRISIS: One Quarter Of Gay Men Surveyed Tried Committing Suicide
Shocking new statistics from GMFA’s FS magazine show that nearly one quarter of gay men who have suffered from depression have tried to kill themselves.
A startling survey in the latest issue of FS magazine uncovers the true extent of the effects of depression on gay men. Around 600 men, who identified that they had or were suffering from depression, were asked if they had tried to commit suicide and around 24%, nearly one quarter, said they had, that number increased to over half when asked if they had had suicidal thoughts.
Around 54% of gay men surveyed said that they had considered ending their lives, with self-esteem being the biggest contributor to their thoughts.
For those men living with HIV, 66% identified their diagnosis as the leading cause of depression and suicidal thoughts.
Simon, 36 from Oxford, is one of the many HIV-positive gay men who responded. He says: “I was diagnosed with HIV in January 2012. I was having lots of risky sex and I knew eventually it would happen but didn’t really care. It wasn’t until I was diagnosed that reality set in. I wasn’t ready for it and became depressed. It affected my job. It affected my social life and I became a recluse.”
Anthony is 26 and from London. He told FS that after his diagnosis he couldn’t handle it. He said: “About three months after I was told I was HIV-positive I tried to overdose. I didn’t cope at all with being told I had the virus. I thought my life was over and suicide was the best option. Luckily my attempt failed.”
When asked, what were the main reasons HIV-positive gay men felt suicidal or why they attempted suicide, 66% said ‘Living with HIV’ was the main issue with ‘Low self-esteem (60%) and relationship issues (39%).
“HIV remains one of the most stigmatised of all health conditions,” says Matthew Hodson, Chief Executive of GMFA. “Rates of depression among gay men with HIV are twice as high as they are among other gay men, affecting about one in every four men. And depression in men with HIV can lead to poor adherence, which can have a major impact on their physical health as well.
“Depression also has an impact on someone’s likelihood of becoming HIV-positive,” adds Matthew. “A recent study showed that men with depressive symptoms were more likely to have unprotected sex, and to have unprotected sex with several partners. Tackling the mental health challenges faced by gay men is crucial if we are going to reduce the high levels of sexual risk-taking and high incidence of HIV in our community.”
Ian adds:
“Gay men are just as likely to face the same everyday struggles straight people face on a day-to-day basis with the added pressure of their sexuality. For HIV-positive gay men the issues they faced were greater due to their diagnosis. The gay men in our new issue wanted to share their stories in a bid to help other gay men realise that they are not alone. The first thing to do when trying to fix a problem is admitting you have one. So, hello gay people… we have a problem.”
Last year helpline charity Samaritans revealed that 1 in ten male callers were worried about their sexuality.
The new issue of FS magazine can be read online for free by going to: www.fsmag.org.uk
If you’d like support Please call 08457 90 90 90 (UK) 1850 60 90 90 (ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit www.samaritans.org to find details of the nearest branch.
Or phone Switchboard on 0330 330 0630
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Leicestershire: Trade Sexual Health Wins Regional Award
Trade Sexual Health, a sexual health service set up to champion the health of the LGBT community in Leicestershire have won an award.
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Man Thrown To His Death By ISIS After Gay Accusation
New pictures have been published of a man brutally murdered by being thrown off a high structure in Syria.
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CLEAN BANDIT Neil Amin-Smith: Olly And I Are Romantic With Each Other
Neil Amin-Smith has talked about his relationship with Olly Alexander from Years and Years and how they surprise each other with romantic gestures like flowers, but will keep their music separate.
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1000 Anti-Gay Marriage Billboards To Be Erected In The USA
The God’s Original Design Ministry thinks God needs help with marriage and has ploughed money into a homophobic billboard campaign it wants to spread across America.
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Teenage Victim Of The Jerusalem Pride Stabber Dies
A teenager who was one of the 6 victims of the Jerusalem Pride stabber has died from her injuries.
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RIP Cilla Black dies at 72
Legendary singer and TV presenter Cilla Black has passed away at the age of 72.
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Russia Wants To Ban Gay Emojis
Russian media watchdog is considering whether to banning “gay” emojis under the “propaganda” law.
The media watchdog in Russia is considering a ban on same-sex “gay” emojis if an investigation finds that they are breaking the non-traditional relationship law, which was introduced in 2013.
Mikhail Marchenko, a Russian senator claims that the same-sex couple emojis which were recently released on Apple’s latest operating system for its iPhones are breaking the “propaganda” law. The new emoji pack includes a vast array of different pairings of same-sex and opposite couples as well as same-sex parents with children.
The law which was passed in 2013 forbids the promotion of “non-traditional” sexual relationships to anyone under the age of 18.
Last year Facebook launched a number of gay pride icons for users to celebrate Pride season.
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WATCH: Horrific Glass Attack In Manchester Gay Village
Police are looking to question two men in connection with a vicious attack in Manchester’s gay village, which left one man with a cut to his head.
Police in Manchester have released CCTV footage taken from inside the New Union pub on Princess Street in the centre of Manchester’s gay village. The chilling footage, shot on the 7th June 2015, shows two men brawling with a man who was struck in the head with a glass. The victim, a 43-year-old male, was left with a cut to the head.
A second man then threw a chair towards the victim before being ejected from the pub. Police have now issued CCTV footage of the incident.
The main offender is described as being white, in his 30s, of a medium build, with short dark hair and a bear. He was wearing a light coloured jacket and a light coloured T-shirt with a CND logo on the front, and dark trousers.
The man who threw the chair was white, in his 30s, of a stocky build, with a shaved head and wearing a light-coloured hoody with the logo EAZ on the front.
Detective Constable Sean Downey said: “The victim suffered a cut to his head as a result of being attacked, and in some ways is fortunate the injuries were not more severe.
“The offender could have had no control over where the shards of glass went and we could have been dealing with a very grave injury. That we aren’t is pure luck, so we are treating this very seriously and we need to find the offender.
“We have issued CCTV footage and I would urge anyone who recognises the man in the images to call us.
“Alternatively, if you were in the pub that night and witnessed what happened, or you suspect who may be responsible, then please call us.”
Anyone with information is asked to call police on 101 or the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.
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Rapist Used Full Body Weight To Rape Male Student In Hotel
A man has been jailed for six years for raping a student he lured to a non-existent job interview.
Sebastian Szerer, a hotel housekeeper who was convicted of rape at the Old Bailey yesterday has been sentenced to jail for 6-years. The victim was lured in July 2012, to the four star hotel, which over-looks Buckingham Palace for a job interview, one that Sebastian Szerer, 39, had made up after talking with the victim on gay dating app Jack’d.
The court heard, after the “formal” part of the interview, Szerer showed the unidentified student the Queen Suite to show off where celebrities stayed whilst booked in at the hotel and suggested that the student try the bed to see how comfortable it was. The court heard that Szerer then advanced upon the student, who fell back onto the bed. Szerer pinned the student down and forced the terrified 24-year-old into oral sex. The court heard how he used his full body weight to hold the man down.
During the trial the student told the court that he was “distraught, shaken up, absolutely petrified.”
The victim kept the brutal attack secret for a year. He only eventually contacted Victim Support after Szerer re-contacted him on social media with the chilling message, “Hello stranger.”
Szerer, who had worked for Red Carnation Hotels, the company, which owns Rubens, for six years, according to his Linkedin, was, found guilty of one count of rape yesterday at the Old Bailey in London and will be sentenced today.
Investigating officer, Detective Inspector Lee Davison, of Sexual Offences Exploitation and Child Abuse Command, said: “Szerer abused his position as Head House Keeper.
“He purposely lured the victim to the hotel on the pretext of a job interview that didn’t exist. He then raped him. Thankfully he has been found guilty and I praise the victim today for his decision to report this rape to the police.
“The Metropolitan Police’s Sexual Offences Exploitation & Child Abuse Command will pursue all such offenders to bring them to justice and I would encourage anyone who has suffered at the hand of another to report the matter in the knowledge that they will be believed and supported.”
Szerer has been jailed for 6 years.
If you have been affected by this report and need to talk with somebody, please contact: MPower on 0808 808 4321 or Survivors UK