Anti-LGBTQ+ legislation, policies, and political rhetoric are a significant driver of anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation among LGBTQ+ youth, according to The Trevor Project’s annual survey on the mental health of LGBTQ+ young people.
One in ten LGBTQ+ youth attempted suicide in 2025, according to the authors.
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The survey findings cover the first year of the second Trump administration, which has amplified rhetoric hostile to gay, lesbian, bisexual, and, in particular, trans youth, whom the federal government no longer officially recognizes. The administration has characterized gender divergent young people as victims of indoctrination, and trans youth in gender-affirming care as “mutilated.”
“Associated experiences such as anti-LGBTQ+ victimization, including bullying, discrimination, threats of violence, and conversion therapy, as well as the impact of recent anti-LGBTQ+ politics, meaningfully contribute to the negative mental health outcomes observed among this population,” the authors write.
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“Given the current climate in our country, it comes as no surprise that many LGBTQ+ young people are reporting high rates of anxiety, depression, and suicidality,” said Jaymes Black, CEO of The Trevor Project.
“Similar to previous research, this national survey demonstrates that LGBTQ+ youth experience these negative mental health outcomes not because of who they are, but because of how they are mistreated by others.”
The numbers are breathtaking.
Not only did one in 10 LGBTQ+ youth between the ages 13 to 24 attempt suicide last year, a remarkable 36% seriously considered it, including 40% of transgender and nonbinary young people. Among trans and nonbinary young people, those who wanted hormones but couldn’t access them were nearly twice as likely to attempt suicide than those who could.
Over half (59%) of LGBTQ+ young people between the ages of 13 and 17 experienced bullying in the past year, and those who did reported significantly higher rates of attempted suicide over the past year than their peers.
90% of LGBTQ+ young people said recent anti-LGBTQ+ laws, policies and debates caused them stress or anxiety.
Asked what they would say to someone who doesn’t understand what it means to be transgender or nonbinary, an 18-year-old from Maine explained, “I would say it’s a matter of acceptance, not understanding. I don’t understand physics and its laws but that doesn’t mean that physics doesn’t exist, or that it exists in a way I want it to. So you may not ‘understand’ it, but that doesn’t mean you can’t accept it.”
“I’m just a person,” a 16-year-old trans respondent from Texas said. “I want to live like the rest of humanity. I want to one day be able to be a husband and father, but my hope for that diminishes when I’m not even allowed to be a son.”
Black sees a glimmer of hope in the collection of despairing numbers and testimonials.
“When LGBTQ+ young people report they have welcoming and supportive communities, spaces, and people in their lives, their risk for attempting suicide lowers significantly,” she writes. “As adults and allies, this is our call to action: we must continue to vocally and visibly show the LGBTQ+ young people in our lives that they belong, exactly as they are.”
Editor’s note: This article mentions suicide. If you need to talk to someone now, call the Trans Lifeline at 1-877-565-8860. It’s staffed by trans people, for trans people. The Trevor Project provides a safe, judgement-free place to talk for LGBTQ youth at 1-866-488-7386. You can also call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.
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