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The mental health of gay and bisexual men in mixed-orientation marriages is poorly understood. In this article, the authors explore the development of anxiety and depression among gay and bisexual men in heterosexual marriages. Sixteen men, living in the Australian states of New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, and Tasmania were interviewed throughout 2016 and 2017. An analysis of interviews identified four main themes, namely, compulsory heterosexuality, existential distress, compartmentalization, and integration and resolution. Participants reported experiencing anxiety and depression, which were exacerbated by the stigmatization of same-sex attraction and by an overwhelming distress from feelings of shame and guilt regarding their marital infidelity. Findings indicate that gay and bisexual men in mixed-orientation marriages develop anxiety and depression in response to the exigencies of compulsory heterosexuality and the compartmentalizing of same-sex attraction and identity during heterosexual marriage. Coming-out as same-sex attracted resolved men's distress by facilitating an integrative self-structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hepatitis C virus is stigmatised because of its association with injecting drug use. Although treatment is available, uptake remains low, especially among people who inject drugs. Ninety health workers completed a survey assessing attitudes towards people who inject drugs and support for treatment for three client scenarios: one who stopped injecting, one on methadone, and one continuing to inject. Support for hepatitis C virus treatment was significantly higher, where the client was not injecting. Participants who showed more negative attitudes towards people who inject drugs were less supportive of clients entering hepatitis C virus treatment, illustrating the influence of health workers’ attitudes in determining treatment options offered to clients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are particular complexities faced by people attempting to tell their stories in the context of social stigma, such as the hostility which often surrounds injecting drug use. In this article, we identify some of the distinct advantages of taking a narrative approach to understanding these complexities by exploring a single case study, across two life-history interviews, with “Jimmy,” a young man with a history of social disadvantage, incarceration, and heroin dependence. Drawing on Miranda Fricker’s notion of “hermeneutical injustice,” we consider the effects of stigmatization on the sociocultural practice of storytelling. We note the way Jimmy appears both constrained and released by his story—how he conforms to but also resists the master narrative of the “drug user.” Narrative analysis, we conclude, honors the complex challenges of the accounting work evident in interviews such as Jimmy’s, providing a valuable counterpoint to other forms of qualitative inquiry in the addictions field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social marginalization is associated with poor health outcomes for affected people. However, in a psychosocial study of treatment for hepatitis C infection conducted in Sydney, Australia, participants living in socially disadvantaged circumstances applied adaptive approaches learned from past experiences of drug dependence, living with symptoms of chronic illness, coping with depression and childhood sexual abuse to enable them to cope with severe treatment-related side-effects. This finding has implications for the clinical management of hepatitis C treatment; the factors and processes that facilitate adaptive coping to adversity associated with social marginalization can be assessed for their clinical contribution to coping with an arduous regimen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Clinical trials of interferon-based treatments for hepatitis C infection show decrements in patients' health-related quality of life due to side effects of therapy. The impact of side effects on patients' overall quality of life still remains unclear. To explore this issue, the authors interviewed people living in New South Wales, Australia, who had undergone treatment for hepatitis C. Their aim in this article is to report participants' experiences of treatment side effects. In Australia, this information is important, because a new interferon-based regimen has been adopted as the mainstay of hepatitis C treatment, and it is predicted that many more people will seek treatment. The authors argue for further qualitative research to enhance knowledge of the impact of this therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Explores the negative reaction against the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras' anti-drug statement in 1992. Cultural and subcultural construction of pleasure, lifestyle and health; Patterns of gay drug use; Reasons for Mardi Gras' release of anti-drug statement.