How Common—and How Harmful—Conversion Therapy Really Is
For decades, LGBTQIA+ people have been subjected to so-called “conversion therapy,” a term that sounds clinical but hides a painful truth. These practices—whether called reparative therapy, biblical counseling, or inner healing—are not therapy at all. They are attempts to change, deny, or suppress someone’s sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression, and the data show they are widespread, harmful, and costly.
How Common Is Conversion Therapy?
Despite professional and legal bans, research from over a dozen countries shows that conversion or “change” efforts remain alarmingly common.
Global estimates suggest that between 2–10% of LGBTQIA+ people have experienced some form of conversion practice. Rates are highest among trans and gender-diverse people and youth, who are often targeted by families or faith leaders rather than clinicians.
In the UK’s national survey, 2% reported undergoing and 5% being offered conversion therapy.
In Canada and the U.S., studies find between 5–13% lifetime exposure, with even higher rates among Indigenous, minority, and religiously affiliated participants.
In the Southern United States, 7.6–11.6% of LGBTQ adults reported having experienced conversion efforts, often before age 18.
A 2025 global review of 41 studies found that most survivors were first exposed as minors, and that conversion efforts occur through prayer (59%), psychotherapy (41%), and gender-role enforcement (66%), typically lasting two to five years.
Behind every percentage is a person—often a teenager—told that their identity is a problem to be solved.
The Human Cost: Mental Health Consequences
The evidence is clear: conversion therapy causes harm.
Across multiple population-based studies:
Survivors are nearly twice as likely to report depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation compared to LGBTQ peers who were never subjected to these practices.
Among U.S. adults, exposure was associated with 2× higher odds of lifetime suicide attempts, even after controlling for adverse childhood experiences.
In transgender populations, 13–14% reported exposure to gender-identity change efforts; those individuals had 1.3× greater odds of depression and 1.7× greater odds of suicide attempts.
A national Canadian survey (Salway et al., 2021) found that over half of respondents were subjected to conversion practices in a religious context, and those exposed had significantly higher psychological distress and lower community belonging.
Among LGBTQ youth, parental or religious conversion efforts predicted higher rates of homelessness, self-harm, and suicide attempts extending into adulthood.
In short: every dataset points to the same conclusion—conversion therapy multiplies mental-health risk.
The Economic and Physical Toll
Beyond mental health, conversion therapy leaves lasting scars on bodies and systems.
A 2022 study in JAMA Pediatrics estimated that for every person subjected to conversion therapy, there are $98,000 in lifetime healthcare and productivity losses and 1.6 life-years lost. Nationally, that equals an annual U.S. economic burden of $9.23 billion.
Emerging research in 2025 found that exposure to conversion efforts correlates with elevated cardiovascular risk—including hypertension and inflammation—linking psychological trauma to measurable physical disease.
The cumulative pattern mirrors other forms of chronic trauma: survivors experience dysregulation, shame, sleep disturbance, and higher use of emergency and inpatient psychiatric services.
These aren’t abstract harms—they’re the predictable outcomes of teaching someone to hate who they are.
Why It Persists
Despite universal condemnation by major medical associations, conversion efforts continue—often under rebranded names: “mentorship,” “deliverance,” “healing prayer,” “biblical counseling,” “purity coaching.”
Many are family-initiated or church-based, occurring outside the reach of professional regulation.
Research consistently shows that religiosity, internalized stigma, and lack of affirming supports are the strongest predictors of exposure.
Moving Forward
The data make the case clear: conversion therapy is not a debate—it’s a threat to public-health.
Every percentage point represents thousands of lives shaped by shame, trauma, and unnecessary suffering.
At Leaf Psychiatry, we stand firmly with survivors and the scientific consensus. Healing begins with safety, affirmation, and evidence-based care—not attempts to erase who you are.
Carter Doyle, MSN, PMHNP-BC, is a board-certified psychiatric nurse practitioner and survivor of conversion practices who provides affirming, trauma-informed care at Leaf Psychiatry in Ann Arbor/Canton, MI. Trained in IFS (Level 1 & 2) and EMDR, Carter integrates evidence-based psychotherapy with medication management and advanced interventions to help patients heal without having to choose between identity and belonging.
Blosnich, J. R., Henderson, E. R., Coulter, R. W. S., & Goldbach, J. T. (2020). Sexual orientation change efforts, adverse childhood experiences, and suicide ideation and attempt among sexual minority adults, United States, 2016–2018.American Journal of Public Health, 110(7), 1024–1030. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2020.305637
Forsythe, A., Pick, C., Tremblay, G., Malaviya, S., Green, A., & Sandman, K. (2022). Humanistic and economic burden of conversion therapy among LGBTQ youths in the United States. JAMA Pediatrics, 176(5), 493–501. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2022.0042
Heiden-Rootes, K., McGeorge, C. R., Salas, J., & Levine, S. (2022). The effects of gender identity change efforts on Black, Latinx, and White transgender and gender-nonbinary adults: Implications for ethical clinical practice. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 48(4), 927–944. https://doi.org/10.1111/jmft.12575
Higbee, M., Wright, E. R., & Roemerman, R. M. (2022). Conversion therapy in the Southern United States: Prevalence and experiences of the survivors. Journal of Homosexuality, 69(4), 612–631. https://doi.org/10.1080/00918369.2020.1840213
Salway, T., Taylor, C., Dromer, C., Ferlatte, O., & Gesink, D. (2021). “Conversion therapy” experiences in their social contexts: A qualitative study of sexual orientation and gender identity and expression change efforts in Canada. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 66(7), 648–657. https://doi.org/10.1177/07067437211030498
Salway, T., et al. (2025). A systematic review of the nature of contemporary sexual orientation and gender identity or expression change efforts, 2000–2024. Current Sexual Health Reports. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11930-025-00305-x
