Blog for Parents of LGBTQ Youth

Gender Spectrum

by Susan Berland | Jul 19, 2017 | LGBTQ Issues

This weekend I will be attending my 4th Gender Spectrum Conference. I’m coming this year in a very different place than I was 4 years ago. I attended my first Gender Spectrum conference about as uninformed as one can be! I didn’t even know there was a spectrum when it...

Why using the term “lifestyle” is harmful

by Susan Berland | Jul 12, 2017 | Family, LGBTQ Issues

I have a group for parents of LGBTQ kids. Sometimes when a parent new to this world of parenting an LGBTQ child joins they use the term lifestyle in support of their LGBTQ kid. It is a term that is used with love and to express their sincere desire to support their...

What can happen when a child comes out as LGBTQ

by Susan Berland | Jul 5, 2017 | Family, LGBTQ Issues

I’m blessed to know many, many moms of LGBTQ kids whose first reaction when their child came out was not one of joy and immediate acceptance. I know moms whose reaction was that but this is not about them. Many of these moms were raised in conservative, evangelical...

Do you know about PrEP?

by Susan Berland | Jun 28, 2017 | Family, LGBTQ Issues

Are you the parent of a gay son? As parents of gay sons, especially teen sons, we worry about our sons contracting HIV/AIDS. If you aren’t worried, you should be. 25% of new HIV infections occur in youth ages 13 to 24 years old. That is a worrisome statistic. As...

On The Move

by Susan Berland | Jun 21, 2017 | Family

Yesterday my husband and I arrived in North Carolina. We are staying a month, seeing what it’s like to live here. Today we spent almost the entire day in the car, driving from place to place to see different neighborhoods and figure out where we want to live when we...

Marriage equality is not always treated equally

by Susan Berland | Jun 14, 2017 | Family, LGBTQ Issues, Marriage Equality

I keep reading stories about gay and lesbian couples who’s parentage is not being recognized in some of our states. That is, a mom who gives birth is recognized as the mother but her wife is not. I’m not familiar with the laws of all our states. I do know that where I...

Love is Love

by Susan Berland | Jun 7, 2017 | Family

We’ve heard that a lot. It usually refers to same-sex couple and in this story, it kind of does too. Because love is love whether it’s between adults or an adult and a child. Gay dads Rob and Reece Scheer from Darnestown, Maryland have adopted four children out of the...

A tip for parents of a transgender child

by Susan Berland | May 31, 2017 | Family, LGBTQ Issues

I have a private Facebook group for parents of LGBTQ kids. The moms and dads in that group are at all stages in the process of learning their child is LGBTQ. Some are accepting, advocating for their child every day. Others are at the beginning of the process and may...

How Rejection Impacts LGBTQ Adults

by Susan Berland | May 24, 2017 | Family, LGBTQ Issues

I wrote the following blog post 3 years ago. It still has relevance. How I wish parents rejecting their kids was a thing of the past but it is not. Back then, I was working with LGBTQ adults who had been rejected but their families. What I found was those who needed...

A tribute to moms

by Susan Berland | May 17, 2017 | Family

There has been a lot of press recently about the mom who broke off ties with her gay son on the day of his wedding. That broke my heart. Her son and his husband are wonderful men from all I’ve read They are loved and supported by the love of one set of parents. That...