Meet Peer Support Specialist, Logan Sohma

Hello, everyone!

The other day, I had the wonderful opportunity to chat a friend of mine, Logan Sohma of the Spectrum Diversity Community Center in Akron, Ohio.

The Spectrum Diversity Community Center introduced Logan on their Facebook a few months ago, stating the following:

"Taking on the roles of peer support specialist and social media outreach coordinator while working toward a Bachelor’s degree in Social Work, Logan has a deep passion for reaching out to lend a hand to anyone in need. With a sharp mind, a quick wit, and a heart of gold, his aspirations include becoming a licensed clinical social worker and pursuing a political career. He is a demiromantic and pansexual non-binary trans man and a fierce advocate for every member of the community. A doting father of two wonderful children, he describes himself as an intersectional feminist, an activist for cannabis legalization and acceptance, and a socialist."

While Logan is new to the Spectrum Diversity Community Center, he says he has worked in some mentorship roles in the past and has seen how this sort of support can help improve people's lives. His role as Peer Support Specialist is important because he knows personally just how hard it can be to find the support you need, especially if you need support from those who can truly empathize and understand the struggles that you are going through. He offered a lot of great advice regarding self care and support for those who needs it, as well as advice for allies on how to support the LGBTQ+ Community.

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The Interview

Emily:

"Hello, Logan! I'd like to thank you for allowing me to talk with you, I'm looking forward to learning more about you, your job, and your thoughts on LGBT mental health and self-care! Are you ready to start?"

Logan:

"Sure, I'd be happy to chat :)"

Emily:

"Great! I’d like to start off by just asking about your personal experience with LGBT mental health. Besides your job, what makes you feel so connected to this topic?"

Logan:

"I guess it would be the experience of coming out first as non binary and then as a trans man and not having that service available to me, and it wasn't that they didn't offer therapy, but they weren't my peers. I had a hard time connecting with any of them seeing as they weren't like me, a gender and sexual minority, and as such, weren't able to truly empathize with my specific struggles. That's why this topic is so important to me, because no one should have to struggle to seek meaningful help like I and so many of us do. Our rates of depression are approximately 4x higher in youths and 8x higher in adults, and there's just not accessible services available."

Emily:

"I definitely agree with you that it can be hard when those providing services don’t seem to be able to empathize as much as you’d like with your struggles. You mentioned that it was especially hard for you, and for so many others, because they weren’t your peers. I gather this is what inspired you to become the Peer Support Leader for the Spectrum Diversity Community Center.

Could you explain what Spectrum does, and what you do in particular? I’ve looked on the Spectrum website and the Facebook page, and I’ll provide those for my readers as well, but I’d love to hear from you about it too"

Logan:

"At Spectrum Diversity, our focuses are providing mental health support, fostering safe, sober gathering spaces and hosting events and groups for people to meet and engage with others within the community, offering community classes such as self-defense and resume building, and we're going to be rolling out some financial literacy and budgeting workshops to help offset some of the struggles felt by those of our community living in poverty. We just want every member of our community to feel safe, loved, supported, and valued, and to help them love themselves a little more too."

Emily:

"That’s really important. I think Spectrum Diversity is a wonderful resource for the community. What do you do in particular as the Peer Support Leader, and how have you seen your job benefit others and even yourself? I know you said earlier when we chatted briefly before the interview that you joined Spectrum Diversity rather recently. Do you have any particular goals in mind for your new position?"

Logan:

"For our peer support program, we have a curriculum to follow over the course of 20 group sessions and 4 add-ons if it's decided the group wants them, run by myself assisted by another staff member. Peer support is so beneficial; it really helps to be able to connect with someone that they know on a personal level what you've gone through. People open up better, I feel, when they know you can truly empathize, and no type of therapy works without being entirely open and honest.

As you've mentioned, I'm new to the organization but I have taken on almost mentorship roles in the past, and over the time I've worked with these people, I've seen then develop more confidence and self worth, and that's really what the mental wellness we hope to promote is all about."

Emily:

"That’s wonderful! I’ve always thought that talking with people who are going through or have gone through similar struggles helps a lot in coping with and managing mental illness.

Besides therapy, what would you say people can do in their everyday lives to help promote mental wellness through self care? In other words, what does “self care” mean to you, and how can little things like just taking care of yourself or indulging in hobbies help, whether without or in addition to peer support? I think a lot of people think of it as selfish, but I think it’s really important to nurture your physical, mental, and emotional health often."

Logan:

"It's definitely important to nourish yourself; the saying 'you can't pour from an empty cup' is 100% true.

Probably the most important thing you can do for yourself as far as mental Wellness is to improve your sleep. Lack of quality sleep can make us feel more depressed, more anxious, and give us a fair amount of brain fog. Shut off your screens, or at least turn the blue light off, for a while before bed, go to bed and wake up at the same time until your body gets used to a pattern. Another thing that's great to do when you're feeling stressed is to take a moment to do some deep breathing exercises. Take a deep breath in, hold it for about 5 to 10 seconds, and then release. If you find yourself needing a guide, there are a whole lot of resources for guided relaxation and guided meditation videos. One of my favourites is White Cloud Mystic on YouTube, but she dives more into spirituality than some people prefer.

Hobbies definitely help, they are often welcome distractions. Though it is important to remember that distraction is not always the best option, and even when distraction is necessary in the moment, it is also crucial to revisit the problem causing the need for the distraction later when you're in a better headspace.

Self-care is all about mental Wellness. Self-care is the ability to nurture yourself into a better State of Mind so that you are able to tackle your life and problems more effectively."

Emily:

"That’s all really great advice. I think we’re about done, but I do want to ask, do you have any more advice for LGBT+ adults and youth struggling with mental illness, or even just struggling with the stigma surrounding the community? And is there any advice you can give to allies who want to support the community?"

Logan:

"I think it's really important to remember that you aren't alone and no one should be made to suffer alone. Probably the best advice is to reach out of you need to. Reach out to us on Facebook or Tumblr, reach out to your local crisis center, reach out on an LGBTQ-focused Facebook group or Discord server. Two phone numbers that are really important are The Trevor Project at 866-488-7386 and Trans Lifeline at 877-565-8860. They are Suicide Prevention Hotlines specifically geared toward the LGBTQ community as a whole and the trans community, respectively. Don't suffer in silence; there is a whole community to guide you through your struggles.

As far as the stigma surrounding the community, fight it if you can, but don't feel bad if you get burned out and just don't have the energy anymore. It's an unfortunate reality, but the stigma is not going to go away anytime soon, so the best thing you can do is practice the ability to tolerate distress and focus on changing the way you think about yourself, your self-worth and confidence, rather than trying to change how we are perceived by others. It's important to fight for the world we want, but your mental wellness is just as important.

And to address the allies, active listening is key. A lot of times, we get into this cycle of listening to respond, but when it comes to a social justice movement relying on interpersonal communication, one must listen to understand. And another thing that I've noticed over the years is that there are a lot of people expressing sympathy for the struggles that our community faces, but the empathy is not there, so it feels very superficial. Comments such as "it should never have been that way," while a nice sentiment, come across as diminutive when we are celebrating a victory, such as the recent Supreme Court ruling regarding job security for LGBTQ persons.

So celebrate our victories with us, listen rather than speak, amplify our voices when necessary without talking over us, and, probably most importantly, fight with us. Make room for us at the events that aren't explicitly for LGBTQ people, confront your homophobic or transphobic family member or friend, show up for us, and don't only do it for the clout."

Emily:

"Thank you Logan! Your responses have been very insightful and you’ve given a lot of great advice. I really appreciate you talking to me about this! Keep doing the great work that you and your colleagues are doing, and I hope to join you and the Spectrum Diversity Community Center at events in the future!

It’s been great talking with you!"

Logan:

"Not a problem! Happy to help in any way I can."

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Please feel free to check out the Spectrum Diversity Community Center on their official website, Facebook, Instagram, and Tumblr! Organizations such as this one, and people such as Logan, are here to help!

If you ever need anything, don't be afraid to reach out. You can always contact me through the "Contact" tab, or just scroll to the bottom of the home page!

And remember, just because Pride Month is over, it doesn't mean you can't still be yourself and love yourself.

Take care, everyone!