School of Nursing, UBC School of Nursing, Vancouver, Canada.
Canada Research Chair Tier III, UBC School of Nursing, Vancouver, Canada.
J Ment Health. 2020 Jun;29(3):321-327. doi: 10.1080/09638237.2019.1677874. Epub 2019 Nov 4.
Gay men, particularly middle aged and older men (over 40 years of age) experience a disproportionate burden of mental health issues compared to heterosexual men. Despite ample evidence that chronic exposure to structural and interpersonal discrimination negatively affect their mental health, little is known from gay men's perspectives how they understand mental health or their strategies to address their mental health concerns. This study's aim was to investigate how middle aged and older gay men experience their mental health and the mitigation strategies used to promote mental health. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 25 men who self-identified as gay. Data were analyzed using an interpretive descriptive approach. Three overarching themes that best illustrate how men perceived their mental health and manage their mental health concerns were identified: gaining perspective, engaging with health services, and promoting and maintaining mental health. This study provides insight into how gay men come to acknowledge the validity of their mental health concerns, engage with health services, and their participation in other activities deemed essential for mental health promotion. These findings are ideally poised to inform development of health resources to promote and protect the mental health of aging gay men.
男同性恋者，尤其是中年和老年男性（40 岁以上），与异性恋男性相比，心理健康问题的负担不成比例。尽管有大量证据表明，长期遭受结构性和人际歧视会对他们的心理健康产生负面影响，但从男同性恋者的角度来看，他们如何理解心理健康或他们解决心理健康问题的策略却知之甚少。本研究旨在探讨中年和老年男同性恋者的心理健康体验，以及用于促进心理健康的缓解策略。对 25 名自认为是同性恋的男性进行了半结构化访谈。使用解释性描述方法对数据进行分析。确定了三个最能说明男性如何看待他们的心理健康以及如何管理他们的心理健康问题的总体主题：获得视角、参与健康服务以及促进和维护心理健康。这项研究深入了解了男同性恋者如何承认他们的心理健康问题的有效性，如何参与健康服务，以及他们参与其他被认为对促进心理健康至关重要的活动。这些发现非常适合为促进和保护老年男同性恋者的心理健康制定健康资源。
