Life Stories of the Filipino Rainbow Elderly

This research was conducted to explore the understudied population of the elder LGBT. To identify their challenges and how do their life stories reflect Erik Erikson’s psychosocial development Integrity vs. Despair and the community support program be provided to the LGBT elders.

The participants of the study were twelve self-identified gay and lesbian elders who were 65 years of age or older and were single in status during the interview. In-depth interviews generated rich narratives which were later subjected to thematic analysis.

Results revealed that the challenges faced by gay and lesbian elders are health issues, basic needs, financial sustainability, need for companionship, fear of dependency and their clamor for support from the government. The majority of the participants’ life narratives reflected sense of integrity over few who expressed their regrets. The various themes yielded from the study became the basis of several recommendations.