Healthy Relationships Program (HRP) for Two-Spirit, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Queer, Intersex, and Asexual + (2SLGBTQIA+) Youth
The Healthy Relationships Program (HRP) for Two-Spirit, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Queer, Intersex, and Asexual + (2SLGBTQIA+) 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 2SLGBTQIA+ youth. It affirms, validates, and celebrates sexual and gender diversity, cultivates a caring and supportive community, and helps 2SLGBTQIA+ youth develop skills and strategies that promote healthy relationships. This trauma-informed, strengths-focused program explores stressors unique to 2SLGBTQIA+ youth, including identity and expression invalidation, stigma, prejudice and discrimination, internalized oppression, coming out, safety, and microaggressions. This program includes 17 sessions, each lasting approximately 45 minutes. It may be delivered in school-based Genders and Sexualities Alliances/Gay-Straight Alliances (GSA) or 2SLGBTQIA+ youth group settings.
For more information, please contact Dr. Alicia Lapointe (Research Scientist) at alapoint@uwo.ca or Annaliese Loeppky (Project Coordinator) at aloeppky@uwo.ca.
Program Information
Program PosterProgram Overview
Program Frequently Asked Questions
Learn More about the Program (Video)
Resources
Supplementary Resources for Facilitation- Building capacity to work with LGBT2Q+ youth: Understanding concepts and terminology | French
- A guide to starting and supporting a GSA | French
- Adapting the Healthy Relationships Program for LGBT2Q+ Youth for a virtual context
Session 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 #4 - My Journey: Coming Out
- 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 #9 - My Superpower: Coping with Challenges. Microaggression Cards Activity - Key Questions
Session Videos (Online)
- 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
Research
Publications- Who are we missing? The impact of requiring parental or guardian consent on research with Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Two-Spirit, Queer/Questioning youth.
- GSA members' experiences with a structured program to promote well-being.
- Feasibility and fit of a mental health promotion program for LGBTQ+ youth.
- The Fourth R: Implementing evidence-based healthy relationships and mental health promotion programming in diverse contexts.
Presentations
- Workshop - Exploring and experiencing a positive mental health promotion program for LGBT2Q+ youth. PREVNet's 10th Annual Conference: Promoting Healthy Relationships for Youth - Creating Spaces that Support Equity, Diversity and Inclusion. Toronto, ON, May 15, 2019.
- Workshop - Promoting resiliency and well-being among LGBT2Q+ youth through a group intervention. Banff International Conferences on Behavioural Science: Equipping Schools and Communities to Support Student Mental Health. Banff, AB, March 17-20, 2019.
- Paper Presented - Development and three-year pilot of an evidence-informed mental health promotion program for LGBT2Q+ youth. 2018 Annual Conference on Advancing School Mental Health. Las Vegas, NV, October 11-13, 2018.
