LGBTQ People, Weed and Mental Health: What You Need to Know
Spencer Macnaughton | Uncloseted Media Weekly Newsletter
In 2025, the global cannabis market size was valued at nearly $103 billion. By 2034, that number is expected to explode by roughly 1,400% to more than $1.43 trillion.
In short, as an increasing number of countries legalize marijuana use, everyone is starting to consume a lot more weed. And LGBTQ people tend to use cannabis at much higher rates than the general population. One study found that 55% of lesbian and 45% of gay young adults use marijuana, compared to about 33% and 37%, respectively, of their straight counterparts.
As LGBTQ people face a mental health crisis, the mainstream stereotypes that depict weed as an antidote for anxiety, panic and depression aren’t painting the full picture. And that could be exacerbating the mental health struggles so many queer people, and especially youth, face.
Here’s what the research demonstrates about marijuana and its effects on mental health:
Multiple studies suggest a link between marijuana use and an increased risk of mental health disorders, including schizophrenia, depression and anxiety in individuals who are genetically predisposed.
One study found that daily marijuana use, especially among younger people, makes some individuals seven times more likely to develop psychosis.
The increase in higher-potency strains of marijuana could pose unknown risks. In 1995, the average content of Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in confiscated marijuana was less than 4%. In 2022, it was more than 16%. Researchers don’t know the full extent of the impact that these higher concentrations can have on mental health and especially on younger people whose brains are still developing.
A systematic review of studies published between 2013 and 2025 found damning results for the mental health of young cannabis users:
They were 51% more likely to experience depression, 58% more likely to experience anxiety, between 50 and 65% more likely to experience suicidal ideation and 80 to 87% more likely to have attempted suicide.
While the above stats paint a grim picture, there is also some research that suggests benefits of cannabis use:
A 2025 systematic review found that medicinal weed showed some efficacy in relieving withdrawal symptoms of opioid use disorder.
THC use has been associated with improvement of post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms, bipolar symptoms and sleep quality.
Other studies found that THC administered in a controlled setting was associated with a decrease of symptoms and adverse effects for a range of mental health disorders, including schizophrenia, psychotic symptoms and anorexia nervosa.
Beyond what we pulled from academia, there is an astounding lack of information about the interplay between weed and mental health. As we dive deeper into Mental Health Awareness Month, I hope advocacy organizations, influencers and news outlets ramp up their coverage of this important topic that affects the countless LGBTQ weed smokers, many of whom are already struggling.
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Last month, our work was republished or cited in 20 different publications! We share all of our new stories for republication with our Uncloseted News Network, an editor’s digest of roughly 100+ editors, reporters and creators. If you want to be a part of it, shoot me an email and CC Sam Donndelinger at sam.donndelinger@unclosetedmedia.com.
After growing up there without a safe space, a trans man creates his rural Ohio county’s first Pride (The Buckeye Flame)
The 24-year-old hopes to bring a sense of community to his home in Adams County
A new US phone network for Christians aims to block porn and gender-related content (MIT Technology Review)
Launching next week on T-Mobile’s network, the cell plan takes a nuclear approach to online safety.
Trans model Aariana Rose Philip makes history as first wheelchair user to attend Met Gala (PinkNews)
Philip is an Antiguan-American model and musician who has quadriplegic cerebral palsy. In 2018, she became the first-ever Black, transgender and physically disabled model to be represented by a major modelling industry.
Donald Trump calls “Y.M.C.A” the “gay national anthem” & brags he’s the reason it went number 1 (LGBTQ Nation)
“Y.M.C.A.” spent two weeks at No. 1 in 2024, not months as Trump claimed.
Man charged with hate crime after trying to ‘beat gay out of child’ (PinkNews)
The victim is reported by the Polk County Sheriff’s Office to have suffered a fractured wrist, marks and bruising across his legs, arms, stomach and back, and a contusion to his forehead.
Over the next week, be on the lookout for new Uncloseted reporting:
🆕 SATURDAY: Though Canada is widely considered one of the most LGBTQ-friendly countries in the world, rates of mental illness among queer Canadian youth are strikingly similar to those in the U.S. Why? Canadian journalists Sophie Holland and Emma Paidra investigate.
🆕 TUESDAY: Why are 50% of trans youth in the U.S. who want access to mental health resources not receiving them? In a joint investigation, Fierce Healthcare and Uncloseted’s Sam Donndelinger talk with youth, families, and industry experts to uncover system-level gaps in care.
🆕 WEDNESDAY: On the next episode of “UNCLOSETED, with Spencer Macnaughton,” I talk to Sam Donndelinger about her recent investigation into the foster care system, where trans youth face abuse, instability and systemic discrimination.
Thanks for reading! Feel free to email me with questions, complaints and story ideas!
Spencer Macnaughton, Editor-In-Chief — spencer@unclosetedmedia.com
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