This Friday, 28 August, is Wear It Purple Day, an annual international awareness day that celebrates LGBTIQA+SB* youth, promotes supportive environments, and fosters open conversations. The 2026 theme is “Colours of Courage”, which celebrates the courage expressed by LGBTIQA+SB young people, not only in big moments, but in the everyday choices they make to live proudly and invite others into understanding, acceptance, and celebration.¹
In rural and remote communities, there is less anonymity and fewer visible role models of affirming services available to the LGBTIQA+SB community, and this often extends to communities within a reasonable travelling distance. You may likely be the only ongoing health service contact for an LGBTIQA+SB young person, as they have limited (if any) options to look around for a better fit.
LGBTIQA+SB mental health is increasingly conceptualised in a way that acknowledges social and structural stressors exacerbating psychological distress, rather than being viewed as purely an issue within the individual.² Positive, affirming interactions with health professionals that create genuine human connection and are free of judgement have been found to alleviate feelings of isolation and increase feelings of connectivity.³ There is evidence behind true allyship being a protective factor, not just something that’s ‘nice to have’. Allyship with this wonderful community and its members is an interpersonal and clinical skill set, which means we can continually learn and improve.
Four behaviours in particular differentiate skilled allyship from good intentions:
Language. Bring your mindful curiosity and non-judgemental attitude into your interactions. Inclusive intake forms, open-ended questions about relationships and identity, and not making assumptions about family structures or pronouns signal safety, before the presenting concern is even discussed.
Responding to disclosure. When someone comes out (also called ‘inviting in’) or discloses a same-sex relationship, don’t over-react with excessive enthusiasm or under-react with silence. It’s your task to stay regulated and follow the person’s lead on how much space the disclosure needs in that conversation.
Repair over perfection. Even skilled allies will get things wrong, such as using an outdated term or making a wrong assumption. The important part here that distinguishes allyship is the skill of recovery. Notice the mistake, name it and correct it if you can (or ask what you should have done), and move on without becoming defensive or over-apologising.
Structural allyship. Whilst individual interactions matter, advocacy beyond these is just as important. Raise and use inclusive language in meetings, question referral pathways that assume a default identity, and flag policy gaps. In smaller workforces where one clinician may be a consumer’s only point of contact for months, this structural layer can determine if the inclusive practice will survive staff turnover.
A way to support yourself on this journey is to practice ‘self-compassionate allyship’. This is the practice of supporting marginalised groups whilst treating yourself with patience, kindness and understanding. Acknowledge that fighting for social justice is difficult, and you will make mistakes. Rather than using self-criticism when you do, treat yourself as you would a friend and draw on the three elements of self-compassion: mindfulness, common humanity, and self-kindness. Self-compassionate allyship also helps prevent burnout by ensuring you can sustain this support over time, reduces fragility by helping you accept feedback, and encourages learning by giving you the safety to try, fail, learn and grow.
There are some great free resources available on the Wear it Purple website to help you celebrate. However, it’s important to remember that Wear it Purple Day is a prompt, not a conclusion. One visible day is only useful if it encourages ongoing improvements in practice, so use this celebration as an opportunity to reflect on your own thoughts, behaviours and reactions, and identify how you can be a better ally. Rather than something vague like “be more inclusive”, pick one concrete behaviour you can try to address this month.
You can also find great resources to be a better ally through organisations such as QLife, Minus18, ACON Pride Training, all of whom offer guides, peer support and educational tools. Black Rainbow is a national volunteer-led social enterprise that focuses on improving the mental health, wellbeing, and community resilience of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander LGBTIQA+ Sistergirl and Brotherboy communities.
Purple is worn for a day, but what stays is whether a young person (or someone older) walked away from an interaction feeling a bit safer to be exactly who they are. Be the best ally you can and try to make each contact count.
Be kind,
Dr Nicole Jeffery-Dawes (she/her)
Senior Psychologist, Mental Health and Wellbeing
*The LGBTIQA+SB acronym stands for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, Queer/Questioning, Asexual, Sistergirl, and Brotherboy. The plus (+) stands for all other gender identities, sexual orientations, and romantic attractions that are not explicitly named in the acronym, such as Pansexual, Gender-Fluid, Gender-nonconforming, Non-Binary, and Androgynous.⁴
- Wear It Purple website. Accessed 28 July 2026 at https://www.wearitpurple.org/wear-it-purple-day-2026
- Kaprinis, S. & Charalampakis, A. (2025). Social exclusion and psychopathology in LGBTQ+ communities: a neuropsychosocial review. Frontiers in Sociology, 24(10). Accessed 28 July 2026 at https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12330642/
- Mondave, M., Saleska, J., Wang, J.J., Bluma, E., Jackson, D., Tapia, Y., Yashar, L., Zima, B.T. & Choi, K.R. (2025). “Feeling Like You Matter:” LGBTQ + Young Adult Perspectives on Affirmative Mental Healthcare. Journal of Behavioural Health Services & Research. 52(1). Accessed 28 July 2026 at https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11685268/
- Changing the Landscape “Why do we use LGBTIQA+SB”. Accessed 28 July 2026 at https://www.changingthelandscape.com.au/why-do-we-use-lgbtiqasb
