Healthy Relationships Program (HRP) for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Two-Spirit, Queer/Questioning (LGBT2Q+) Youth
The Healthy Relationships Program (HRP) for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Two-Spirit, Queering/Questioning (LGBT2Q+) Youth is a small group positive mental health promotion program for gender, sexual, and romantic minority youth. It helps build resiliency and promote well-being among LGBT2Q+ youth. It affirms, validates, and celebrates sexual and gender diversity, cultivates a caring and supportive community, and helps LGBT2Q+ youth develop skills and strategies that promote healthy relationships. This trauma-informed, strengths-focused program explores stressors unique to LGBT2Q+ youth, including identity and expression invalidation, stigma, prejudice and discrimination, internalized oppression, coming out, safety, and microaggressions. This program includes 18 sessions, each lasting 45 minutes. It may be delivered in school-based Genders and Sexualities Alliances/Gay-Straight Alliances (GSA) or LGBT2Q+ youth group settings.
Program Poster
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Program Overview
EnglishFrench
Frequently Asked Questions
Supplementary Resources for HRP for LGBT2Q+ Youth Facilitators and/or Genders and Sexualities Alliance (GSA) Advisors
Terminology and Concepts, Policy, Research, and Programming Documents
Loeppky, A., & Lapointe, A. (2020). Building capacity to work with LGBT2Q+ youth: Understanding concepts and terminology. Western UniversityEnglish French
Loeppky, A., & Lapointe, A. (2020). A guide to starting and supporting a GSA. Western University.
English French
Lapointe, A., & Loeppky, A. (2020). Adapting the Healthy Relationships Program for LGBT2Q+ Youth for a virtual context. Western University .
Videos
(In-Person)
- LGBT2Q+ Youth’s Experiences and Protective Factors
- Session #2, Mine to Name: Identities/Ways of Beings. Activity: Breaking Binaries - Debriefing Questions
- Session #5, My Mind Matters: Mental Health and Well-Being (Part 1). Opening Circle
- Session #7, Thinking Ahead: Making Safer Choices About Substance Use. Opening Circle
- Session #4, My Journey: Coming Out
- Session #9, My Superpower: Coping with Challenges. Microaggression Cards Activity – Key Questions
(Online)
- Healthy Relationships Program for LGBT2Q+ Youth
- Session #10, We All Have a Say: Rights and Responsibilities. Closing Circle
- Session #12, Right and True: Communication Styles. Activity: Case Studies and Microaggressions
- Session #14, Ships: Healthy and Unhealthy Relationships. (Un)Healthy Relationships Activity
- Session #15, (Re)Building Ties: Addressing Relationship Violence
For more information, please contact Dr. Alicia Lapointe (Research Scientist) at alapoint@uwo.ca or Annaliese Loeppky (Project Coordinator) at aloeppky@uwo.ca
Publications
Cwinn, E., Cadieux, C., & Crooks, C. (2020). Who are we missing? The impact of requiring parental or guardian consent on research with Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Two-Spirit, Queer/Questioning youth. Journal of Adolescent Health , 1-3. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2020.07.037Lapointe, A., & Crooks, C. V. (2018). GSA members’ experiences with a structured program to promote well-being. Journal of LGBT Youth, 15(4), 300-318. doi: 10.1080/19361653.2018.1479672
Lapointe, A., Dunlop, C., Crooks, C. V. (2018). Feasibility and fit of a mental health promotion program for LGBTQ+ youth. Journal of Youth Development, 13(4), 100-117. doi: https://doi.org/10.5195/jyd.2018.585
Crooks, C. V., Chiodo, D., Dunlop, C, K., Lapointe, A., & Kerry, A (2018). The Fourth R: Implementing evidence-based healthy relationships and mental health promotion programming in diverse contexts . In A. Leschied, D. Saklofske, & G. Flett (Eds.), The Handbook of School-Based Mental Health Promotion: An Evidence Informed Framework for Implementation (pp. 299-321). New York, NY: Springer.
Presentations
Lapointe, A. (2019). Exploring and experiencing a positive mental health promotion program for LGBT2Q+ youth. Workshop facilitated at PREVNet’s 10th Annual Conference: Promoting Healthy Relationships for Youth: Creating Spaces that Support Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, Toronto, ON, May 15, 2019.
Crooks, C. V., & Lapointe, A. (2019). Promoting resiliency and well-being among LGBT2Q+ youth through a group intervention . Workshop presented at the Banff International Conferences on Behavioural Science: Equipping Schools and Communities to Support Student Mental Health, Banff, AB, March 17-March 20, 2019.
Crooks, C. V., & Lapointe, A. (2018). Development and three-year pilot of an evidence-informed mental health promotion program for LGBT2Q+ youth . Paper presented at the 2018 Annual Conference on Advancing School Mental Health, Las Vegas, NV, October 11-October 13, 2018.
