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Review: Mastering wellness: LGBT people’s understanding of wellbeing through interest sharing

This paper breaks new ground on our understanding of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer (LGBTQ) health generally and mental health particularly. It interrogates several common perceptions of sexual minority wellbeing and finds them empirically wanting. Its questioning of the minority stress model (on which the US Institute of Medicine’s 2011 report on LGBTQ health partially relies) is productive and important. Its emphasis on LGBTQ agency is very welcome. The author provides a careful review of the literature, clearly explains the theoretical framework, and offers a cogent explanation of the method. The prose style is clear and engaging. Although it samples participants in one cultural setting, its findings may be transferable to other Western social contexts. Although both popular perceptions and the minority stress model have viewed sexual minority populations as being at risk for mental and physical health problems, this study turns toward a more recent trend in emphasising resilience rather than vulnerability. Identifying socialisation around common interests, this qualitative study underscores the dimensions of quality of life, social connectedness, social support, and community involvement. The author understands the limits of the qualitative methods in this exploratory study and has encouraged the participants to direct the conversation. Participants identified these themes: mastering wellness, experiencing mental health, developing awareness, broadening the concept of wellbeing, building self-esteem, and creating balance. The notion of interest-sharing counters stereotypes of sexual minority isolation and victimhood, while emphasising solidarity and agency. The author acknowledges the limitations of the study – a homogenous social setting and well-educated participants with disposable income; but this preliminary study offers directions for larger mixed-methods research on the relationship between communities of shared interests and sexual minority populations’ health.