Baltimore County, MD Time of Your LIfe, 4 May 2021

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From YouTube: Creating Inclusive Communities for LGBTQIA Adults

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Dionne Coleman, MSW, LCSW-C

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Welcome back to the time of your life., I'm your host, ethel rasmussen., there's a saying that hidden bias is an opportunity for education.

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Today's show is just that, since it continues with more information about.

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The lgbtqia community, so that we can create inclusive and welcoming communities.

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Our special guest is dionne coleman,, a licensed clinical social worker to share her expertise.

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Dionne,, thank you for being on today's show..

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Thank you guys so much for having me.

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in our previous segment, jackie loftin shared information about an upcoming workshop series,.

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The department of aging has planned for lgbtqia, older adults, and allies.

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The lgbtqia community, however, has historically faced adversities and challenges..

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Can you share information about those adversities,.

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Including as it relates to social stigma, family,, the media,.

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And other issues like discrimination and inequality.

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When we think of the older lgbtqia community,.

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One of the biggest challenges for this population is that.

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Historically, they've been understudied., there's not a lot of research that dictates the type of programming.

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And education and training needed for people, professionals,.

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And for the community to help this meet the specific needs of this population.

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That's what makes events like the baltimore county pride event, so important.

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We need to bring attention to these issues, because this population is under-represented in movies and television.

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And other forms of media- and this can make a person feel alone in the world.

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For many in this population,, we have to remember that they've lived their lives with this part of their lives. Secret.

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So that amount of hidden love and life for yourself,.

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It can make you feel alone, already.

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In a situation where you don't feel like, you have a voice,.

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You don't feel like you're, represented,, there's so much pain and trauma associated with that.

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On top of that,, many of these individuals have past trauma.

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they've had historical experiences of discrimination.

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Or prejudice or bias or just oppression.

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And so this keeps them from sharing many of the truths about themselves.

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The big secret of this lifestyle can lead to self-isolation,.

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It can lead to feelings of discontentment,.

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It can lead to a sense of disconnection and definitely depression.

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A lot of times, family members are not supportive, they're, not understanding..

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Particularly when an older adult comes out later in life,.

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Their family doesn't really have a window from which to view this.

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And so they don't know how to support.

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There's no programming out here to teach them, "how. Do you support an older loved one who comes out later in life.

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To tell you that I've been gay, all my life,, but I've been living a lie? " dionne,. What about health concerns within the lgbtqia community?.

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People are surprised at this statistic,, but for older adults in general,, not just for the lgbtqia community,, but for older adults in general,. Stds is a big deal..

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The cdc reports state from 2010-2020,.

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Cases of stds doubled in the 65 and older population.

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This is just a general concern for that population,, but for the lgbtqia older population,.

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That concern is heightened, as studies show that.

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This particular population are not always honest with their healthcare providers,.

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Which means that they miss opportunities for certain tests.

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That are associated with risk factors that are specific to their lifestyle.

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This can lead to getting diagnosis later.

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Or even missing some opportunities to get early treatment.

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For things that could be easily treated if it was addressed, earlier.

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Dionne, building allies or a support system can create life-changing positive outcomes.

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Please share why building a foundation is critical.

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Everyone in life needs a team.

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You have to have people you can count on when you want to talk,.

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When you want to hang out, when you just need to cry, scream, be yourself.

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For the older population who we have to.

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Remember are dealing with issues associated with health, they're, losing friends due to death and illness.

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They have new limitations that they're dealing with like.

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A decline in their ability to just move the way they want to,.

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Address activities of daily living like cooking and cleaning, and driving.

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What happens? Is, they're, having declines in both their mental and physical health.

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For this population, having your own team is so important.

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Everybody in life needs people that they can count on,.

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But for this population, building alliances, having those healthy connections, having mutually beneficial reciprocal relationships,.

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These are the things that are germane to having a healthier and happier life.

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In closing, thinking about everything, we've discussed,.

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How can we all be more inclusive and welcoming with the lgbtqia community?.

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The best thing we can do is love them. The way we want to be loved.

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We need to educate ourselves about the community..

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We need to meet people exactly where they are, no matter their age,, their race,, their gender,, their sexual orientation,, their identity.

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We have to be open-minded,, we have to be flexible in our thinking.

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All of us,, every single human being is made up of many parts,.

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So we're the sum of all those parts.

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when we interact with the older lgbtqia community,.

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We need to make sure that we remember that their sexual identity.

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Or their sexual orientation does not define who they are.

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Dionne,, thank you for sharing your expertise on the show. Today.

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Thank you so much for having me.. It was an honor.