The Trevor Project’s latest survey suggests being LGBTQ+ does not cause mental health problems, but discrimination, exclusion and barriers to support do.
The U.S. National Survey on the Mental Health of LGBTQ+ Young People – polled and researched throughout 2025 and released last month – offers a sobering snapshot of what many LGBTQ+ youth are experiencing today. According to the survey, 36 percent of LGBTQ+ young people seriously considered suicide in the past year, including 40 percent of transgender and nonbinary youth. Ten percent reported attempting suicide.
Nearly half of respondents who wanted mental health care said they were unable to access it.
By comparison, the CDC’s 2023 Youth Risk Behavior Survey found that about 13 percent of heterosexual students nationwide seriously considered suicide during the previous year. While mental health challenges affect young people across demographic groups, LGBTQ+ youth continue to report substantially higher rates of thoughts of suicide and psychological distress.
The findings are alarming, but the report points to a question often overlooked: Why are LGBTQ+ youth experiencing these challenges?
The Trevor Project’s research suggests the answer is not their identities. As much as 90 percent of LGBTQ+ youth surveyed said recent politics and debates surrounding LGBTQ+ rights negatively affected their well-being. More than three quarters reported feeling unsafe because of those discussions, and nearly one third said anti-LGBTQ+ policies had caused them or their families to consider moving to another state.
The report also highlights how discrimination can take many forms. LGBTQ+ youth may face bullying at school, rejection at home, harassment in their communities, barriers to healthcare and dehumanizing public debates that question their rights and identities.
For many young people in the South, those pressures can be compounded by cultural stigma, hostile political rhetoric and religious messages that frame LGBTQ+ identities as unacceptable.
The survey further emphasizes the importance of intersectionality. LGBTQ+ youth are not a monolithic group, and those who experience multiple forms of marginalization often report the greatest challenges. Transgender and nonbinary youth, LGBTQ+ youth of color, disabled youth and young people facing economic hardship frequently experience higher levels of stress and greater barriers to support.
These findings are consistent with patterns The Trevor Project has documented across its annual surveys since 2019. While specific statistics have shifted over time, the organization’s research has repeatedly found that experiences such as discrimination, rejection and social exclusion are linked to poorer mental health outcomes, while acceptance and support are linked to better outcomes.
The 2025 survey points to the same conclusion. LGBTQ+ youth are not struggling because they are LGBTQ+. They are struggling because they are forced to navigate environments that often stigmatize, exclude or target them.
The Trevor Project’s research suggests that when young people have supportive families, affirming schools, welcoming communities and access to mental health care, their chances of thriving improve dramatically.
