Straight Jacket

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A groundbreaking and controversial book for gay and bisexual people on how to build happy, secure lives and relationships, and a call-to-arms for society to protect and nurture young people, regardless of their sexual orientation. Written by Matthew Todd, editor of the UK's biggest-selling gay magazine, Straight Jacket is a revolutionary guide for gay men whichbegan life as an article in Attitude magazine. Following the biggest response from readers in the magazine's history, Matthew used his article as the basis for his keynote address at the Terrence Higgins Trust annual conference, where it was met with a rapturous reception. Groundbreaking in its approach, Straight Jacket looks beneath the shiny facade of contemporary gay culture and asks if gay people are as happy as they could be - and if not, why not? Frank and uncompromising it looks at... why gay people suffer from disproportionately high rates of depression, addictions, suicidal thoughts and behaviour, and why significant numbers experience difficulty in sustaining meaningful relationships... how growing up in the closet can overwhelm the gay child with a deep shame that derails the development of self esteem, and explains how problems emerge in adulthood in diverse ways... how many gay men overcompensate for gay shame by pursuing unobtainable perfection - aspiring to have perfect bodies, boyfriends, lives - and how gay culture, which is often seen to celebrate drug abuse, body fascism and sex addiction, is built on this collective shame which serves to compound the problems. Offering practical solutions to difficult problems, Straight Jacket recognizes that this is a watershed moment - and a piercing wake-up-call-to-arms for the gay and wider community to acknowledge the importance of turning gay shame into gay pride.

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Matthew Todd is the editor of the UK's bestselling gay magazine, Attitude. In 2011 he was named Men's Magazine Editor of the Year by the British Society of Magazine Editors and Stonewall Journalist of the Year. He has written for national newspapers, including the Guardian, Observer, Telegraph and Sun. He appears regularly on tv and radio and is a regular seaker at conferences and events, including the Terrence Higgins Trust HIV Prevention CHAPS conference. He lives in London.