The Trevor Project stands as a lifeline for LGBTQ+ young people, offering compassionate, confidential support in moments when it is needed most. Through its 24/7 crisis services, advocacy, and research, it creates a world where every young person is seen, heard, and valued. With empathy at its core, the organization not only responds to crisis but also fosters hope, resilience, and the belief that no one has to face their struggles alone.
Definitions of Some Commonly Used Terms
1. AFAB/AMAB: Assigned Female/Male at Birth. The terms AFAB and AMAB are used by a wide range of individuals, including those who are transgender, non-binary, or intersex.
2. Aromantic/Aro: A romantic orientation generally characterized by not feeling romantic attraction or a desire for romance. Aromantic people can be satisfied by friendship and other non-romantic relationships. Many aromantic people also identify with a sexual orientation, such as asexual, bisexual, etc.
3. Asexual/Asexuality/Ace: A broad spectrum of sexual orientations generally characterized by feeling varying degrees of sexual attraction or a desire for partnered sexuality. Asexuality is distinct from celibacy, which is the deliberate abstention from sexual activity, despite sexual desire.
4. Bisexual/Bi: A person who is romantically, emotionally, or sexually attracted to more than one gender. It is a sexual orientation representing the capacity for attraction to both the same gender and different genders.
5. Cisgender: A gender identity, or performance in a gender role, that society deems to match the person’s assigned sex at birth. The prefix cis- means "on this side of" or "not across."
6. Coming Out: Coming out is the process of voluntarily sharing one's sexual orientation and/or gender identity with others. This process is unique for each individual and there is no right or wrong way to come out.
7. Gay: This term primarily describes people, usually men, who are romantically or sexually attracted to people of the same sex.
8. Gender: A person's identity and social expression like man, woman, non-binary, genderfluid etc. Note that it need not be the same as the sex assigned at birth.
9. Gender Dysphoria: Gender Dysphoria: Used to describe when a person experiences discomfort or distress because there is a mismatch between their sex assigned at birth and their gender identity.
10. Intersex: An umbrella term to describe a wide range of natural body variations that do not fit neatly into conventional definitions of male or female. Intersex variations may include, but are not limited to, variations in chromosomal compositions, hormone concentrations, and external and internal characteristics.
11. Lesbian: This term primarily describes people, usually women, who are romantically or sexually attracted to people of the same sex.
12. Non-binary: A gender identity and experience that embraces a full universe of expressions and ways of being that resonate for an individual, moving beyond the male/female gender binary.
13. Pansexual (Pan): It is a term used to describe people who have romantic, sexual or affectional desire for people of all genders and sexes.
13. Queer: An umbrella term used to describe gender/sexual/romantic orientations or identities that fall outside of societal norms.
14. Romantic Orientation: It is attraction or non-attraction to other people characterized by the expression or non-expression of love.
15. Sex (Biological Sex): A categorization assigned at birth based on biological traits like body anatomy and chromosomes.
16. Transgender: A person whose gender identity is different from the sex they were assigned at birth.
