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Abstract
Men engaged in sex work experience significant stigma that can have devastating effects
for their mental health. Little is known about how male sex workers experience stigma
and its effects on mental health or their strategies to prevent its effects in the
Canadian context. This study examined the interrelationships between stigma and mental
health among 33 Canadian indoor, male sex workers with a specific goal of understanding
how stigma affected men's mental health and their protective strategies to mitigate
against its effects. Men experienced significant enacted stigma that negatively affected
their social supports and ability to develop and maintain noncommercial, romantic
relationships. Men navigated stigma by avoidance and resisting internalization. Strategy
effectiveness to promote mental health varied based on men's perspectives of sex work
as a career versus a forced source of income. Programming to promote men's mental
health must take into consideration men's diverse strategies and serve to build social
supports.