Exploring Mental Health and Quality of Life of Transgender of North India: An Anthropological perspective

Background: Transgenders are one of the most neglected, outcasted, and excluded groups in society, thereby making their mental health fragile. Only legal transformations are not sufficient to amalgamate them in the society. Aim: The present study is an attempt to evaluate the mental health and quality of life of the transgender population of Chandigarh (North India). Methods: A total of 51 transgender individuals (36% of the total transgender population), ranging in age from 18 to 50 years, were enrolled in the study from Chandigarh by using a snowball sampling method. Mental health and quality of life were evaluated by the standardized instruments, i.e., the WHOQOL-BREF and PHQ-12, respectively. Results & Discussion: The results demonstrated poor mean scores for overall quality of life (47.09), with the highest score in the physical domain (69.53) and the least in the psychological domain (59.44). A comparison between trans males and trans females exhibited statistically non-significant differences across four domains of the WHO-BREF scale. The prevalence of depression was 49% among the present population, out of which 33.3% were having moderate depression. Hence, a positive public perception along with stringent legislative reforms is required for the holistic inclusion of transgenders in society.