BENGALURU: Twenty-year-old Aman Misra (name changed to protect identity), is a victim of a modern-day conversion therapy. When he came out of the closet and revealed to his family that he was homosexual, his family, unable to come to terms with reality, took him to a psychiatrist, who promised to “reverse the condition.”
“The only reason I agreed to visit the facility was that I was emotionally vulnerable then. My family was certain that they could change my sexual orientation. The counselling had me convinced that my orientation was a disorder. These clinics wouldn't medicate you until you agree. So the counselling is to convince you that you have a disorder," he says, adding, “The medication is mostly herbal and didn't really do anything. In fact, it was two months of brainwashing and the pressure from family members that messed with me more.”
The metropolitan city of Bengaluru is home to pseudo-scientific medicinal services that work under the umbrella name of conversion therapy. Dr B A Roy, a sexologist says, “Homosexuality is a disorder which is similar to an addiction. It has to be treated through a series of counselling and medication.”
He offers counselling at his Rajajinagar office and provides a number of medicines to “remove the unwanted libido”. “The medicine is aimed at targeting the libido that attracts them to their same gender,” he adds.
Despite the Indian Psychiatric Society and The World Health Organisation disregarding the archaic notions of homosexuality, Indian Psychologists and sexologists still continue their personal approach to sexuality and sexual orientation. And though there has been an outpouring of from many LGBTIA support groups regarding the issue in the past, the government has failed to take an action on this unscientific approach to homosexuality.
23-year-old Parvathy (name changed to protect identity), another victim of the conversion therapy, went in for counselling unable to bear the anger and disgust her immediate and extended family.
“My reason of undertaking this treatment was the pressure my parents had to deal with, after I came out. I have undergone their apparent treatment for over a month and I can assure you that the treatment doesn’t do what it claims to. After a month I was done with everything. I felt like these medicines were messing with my hormones, so I completely stopped medicating.”Even so, Dr Pushpalata Maharana from Jiya Ayurveda in HSR Layout, insists that “homosexuality is not natural.”
“Our culture does not support it, even in Kamasutra the homosexual acts were performed to please the kings and it has nothing to do with Nature. Homosexuality is similar to bestiality or having sex with trees. We provide detox treatment followed by counselling and then medicines. Medication and counselling go hand-in-hand. We don’t have a particular treatment, we customise treatment according to the patient's cultural background. Our medication targets the libido that is causing the inclination. In the cases I’ve dealt with, I was approached by their family members,” she says.“The American Psychological Association has prescribed against conversion therapy, stating its harms but psychiatrists continue practising it in some form or the other. These range from hormone replacement to electroconvulsive therapy,” says Suravi Patra, Assistant Professor at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences.
Activists speak
"Some societies are fundamentally flawed and exercise unjust pressure of the norm to these marginalised communities. Over the years, I have come across cases of non-acceptance of homosexuality, where children and adults are sent for counselling, locked up in mental hospitals and are subjected to unscientific treatments," says Uma Umesh P, the founder of Jeeva, Sexual Minorities Right's Organisation. Speaking on this issue Vinay Chandran, the counsellor at Swabhava Trust, Sexual Minorities Support Organisation, raised his concerns regarding the implications of these Victorian treatment methods.
"Some of them offer 'aversion therapy' that involves the use of electric shock, or anti-depressants and sometimes even anti-anxiety or anti-psychotic medication. These medications cause severe trauma to the clients, which leads to a blow to self-esteem and increased risk for depression and suicide," he says. "Many treatments, despite their homophobic bias and non-scientific approach, are taken voluntarily by clients because they don't have a choice, or because they are made to believe that homosexuality is a disease. These beliefs and the following treatments can scar individuals for a long time. Networking with a good support system of LGBT people is a great boon to these individuals," he adds.
Tall claim
28-year-old Pavan (name changed to protect identity), however, had a different experience with conversion therapy. “I took the treatment for about six months and the results were very positive. After the treatment I finally felt comfortable with myself and the people around me. I was not treated impure or as an outcast among my friend circle anymore. Two months after the treatment I got close to one of my colleagues and ended up forming a very meaningful relationship with her.”