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Penn State Health offers tips for supporting LGBTQ+ employees, family this holiday season

The holidays are a great opportunity for celebration, but for some individuals within the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and related sexual/gender minority communities, it can be a challenging time.

Individuals can feel a sense of anxiety leading up to the holidays as they consider how family will accept them or their partner, or they may feel anxiety if they have not come out to everyone within their family. The Penn State Health regional LGBTQ+ business and employee resource groups recommended that the organization provide strategies for LGBTQ+ employees and for employees with LGBTQ+ family members to navigate the holiday season.

Here are a few recommendations that come from the national PFLAG organization, which provides support to LGBTQ+ individuals and their families:

  • Identify someone from the LGBTQ+ community with whom you are comfortable and with whom you can connect during the holiday, should you need someone who understands what you are going through.
  • Transgender and nonbinary individuals may find it helpful to recognize that family members could occasionally use the wrong pronoun, so before your visit, think about how you will address these situations when they come up. Be prepared to let family members know that you acknowledge that it can be difficult and that you appreciate their commitment to using the correct pronouns.
  • Family members or transgender and nonbinary individuals can prepare for family visits by practicing using the correct pronouns.
  • If you are in a relationship and plan to bring your partner to the family event, discuss in advance how you will talk about the relationship and how you will show affection.
  • For employees with LGBTQ+ family members, ask the family member, in advance, how they would like to handle conversations or questions about their sexual orientation or gender identity from other family members or friends.

For additional recommendations and information, see more tips from PFLAG. For supporting younger LGBTQ+ people, see The Trevor Project’s Holiday Self-Care Tips for  LGBTQ+ Youth. To reach a local chapter of PFLAG, email pflagcenpa@yahoo.com.

Additional resources and hotlines

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