Be healthy, wealthy and gay

Welcome to the Fall 2005 Special Health and Wellness edition of Between The Lines. In this issue we've looked into the many unique ways that our community seeks out personal growth, health, support and medical services to build a healthy life, a healthy family and a healthy community.
We feature in this issue some wonderful ways to pamper yourself, too – which we believe is an essential part of building a happy body and strong self-esteem. So go to the spa – you deserve it!
The resource directory in this issue includes lots of businesses and service providers who are ready and able to serve the LGBT community – they provide organic foods, martial arts training for an excellent workout, personal training, medical services and alternative health products. We encourage you to use them to your health!
We have learned that the traditional medical profession sometimes overlooks our community's needs, and does not automatically honor our families of choice. We have made a lot of progress in recent years educating the medical profession and finding healthcare providers that want to understand us – and in reaching out to healthcare professionals who are LGBT themselves. They have a special perspective on LGBT health needs and their colleagues understanding of them, and are often our best choices for quality healthcare. Many of them are listed in the resource directory in this issue and online HERE.
The LGBT community has always been health conscious – whether by choice because we want to look and feel our best, or because we have been forced to deal with health issues imposed on us by the HIV/AIDS epidemic and homophobia. We have a history of seeking new and unusual solutions to the health challenges we have faced, and we have a collective past of dealing with health risks together – as a community – and not isolating away from each other.
It is in that spirit of supportive community that we bring you this special Health & Wellness edition. We wish you the best of health and life!