Meth is still ravaging the LGBTQ community, we must address the crisis
As the opioid epidemic continues to dominate national news, another urgent crisis is wreaking havoc in communities throughout the United States.
Methamphetamine addiction is on the rise, and it’s hitting communities hard, especially the LGBTQ+ community. November 30 is National Methamphetamine Awareness Day, a poignant time to raise the alarm about the devastating impact of this drug and the reasons behind its growing prevalence within the LGBTQ+ community.
Based on 2020 and 2021 data compiled by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), sexual minorities (gay, lesbian, or bisexual) adults were at least twice as likely to use stimulants in the past year as their heterosexual counterparts.
Gay men were over four times more likely than straight men to have used meth in the past year. As a mental health counselor and coordinator of the LGBTQ+ program at River Oaks Treatment Center in South Florida, I know firsthand how devastating meth addiction in this marginalized demographic can be.
