When I came out, my whole life fell apart. I was born a girl and I never felt like one. I was popular and funny but deep down, I never saw myself as the type of girl to wear skirts or put makeup on or talk about boys. When I was 13, I mustered enough courage and told my mom and dad I didn’t feel like a girl. My dad’s face went from curious to shocked and my mom tried to tell herself it was a dream. They kept saying mean things to me, but I try hard to ignore them. Now, I identify as a pansexual and I’m still trying to figure out my identity. (Questioning/14/Pansexual)
Story #2545
When I came out, it was to my grandparents. My mom was on a business trip and my dad was, well, divorced with my mom. I told my grandparents that I was gay. They were at first shocked but they both told me that they loved me to death, no matter what I identify as. When my mom came home a few days later, I told her I was gay, and she was extremely supportive. My birthday was two days ago and my mom got me the Gay Pride flag and my grandparents ordered me a rainbow cake. They’re so loving! Hope you guys are supported as well! (M/17/Gay)
Story #2544
When I came out I was 15 I knew since I was maybe 12. I brought my girlfriend Lilly over for dinner. I planned on telling my parents and my older sister at dinner but I just couldn’t. After dinner Lilly and I went into my room we started talking and then we kissed for the first time. We called each other “girlfriend” but we had never kissed. That night after Lilly left, my sister Cassidy came into my room and said, “I saw you and Lilly kiss.” I started crying. Cassidy was so sweet; she hugged me and said, “It’s okay, I’ll help you tell mom and dad.” I did and I realized for no reason. They both said they would always support me. Lilly and I are still together. (F/18/Lesbian)
Story #2543
When I came out a few years ago, I knew that I was male, but out of fear I convinced myself that my feelings weren’t valid and that I was saying I was male just for the attention. This fear was reenforced when I came out to my mother (at the time identifying as non-binary for the previously mentioned reasons). I told her how I felt more comfortable dressing in a suit and tie and how being referred to as a girl caused me a lot of anxiety and depression because this was not who I knew myself to be. She told me that God gave her a girl and that God never told her to let me wear a suit and be like a boy. Since then, I’ve come out as a trans male and she’s slowly becoming a little more accepting, but I still feel nervous when talking to her about anything gender related because what she said to me all those years ago is still with me today. (M/17/Bisexual)
Story #2542
When I came out, my dad was full of anger. (My mom passed away when I was 12.) He kept calling me a disgrace to our family and that I was a mistake. I was heartbroken because I thought being bisexual would be OK to my dad, which now I know it isn’t. My dad still doesn’t support me and always talks bad about me to his friends and our family members. After a few months, I couldn’t hold my anger anymore and I confronted my dad and told him that HE was a disgrace for being hateful and rude. Me and my dad got into a heated argument that night, so I packed my things and I went to my grandparents’ (they live in the next neighborhood) and stayed the night there. My grandparents are extremely supportive and caring, so they were enraged when they found out what my dad said about me. To this day, me and my dad still don’t get along and every time I think about what happened, I burst into tears. Nowadays, I try my best to ignore my father. It hurts but I don’t want to ruin our bond even further. (F/16/Bisexual)
Story #2541
When I came out it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows. I came out during covid (which was dumb) and I was almost 18 years old. I knew my parents were homophobic but I had hope that they would love me for who I was. Well, how wrong was I. I came out and my brother didn’t have a reaction and my dad went along with what my mom said. This means my mom is the most homophobic person I know and up to this day (almost 4/5 years later) she always has a way to make a homophobic comment. Every day these take a piece out of me. I still live with them (I should be grateful that they didn’t kick me out) but I am paying the price over the years and it is taking a little of me every day. (F/22/Lesbian)
Story #2540
When I came out I was sitting in the park with my family. My dad was throwing the old pigskin around with my brothers and my mom was on the phone with a friend and I was doodling in my sketchbook. I didn’t know my mom knew about the LGBTQ and its flags, so when I drew the pansexual flag, she took my sketchbook and asked me if I was pan. Nervously, I said yes, and my mom smiled and hugged me. She called my dad and three brothers over and we celebrated by eating at a fancy restaurant. Now, I live happily with my family and I’m dating a super sweet girl. (F/14/Pansexual)
Story #2539
When I came out, a few of my friends and I were chatting away in study hall. One of my friends said that we should play a blooket, which is this educational and kid-version of Kahoot. We all played it and got bored of it after ten minutes. After that, we played Spill the Tea, which is me and my friend’s version of secret spilling. When it was my turn, I told my friends I was abrosexual and I was questioning my gender. My friends squealed and hugged me and supported me, while this group of Christian football players insulted me and called me a disgrace to God. I started to cry when my best friend, who was lesbian, started shouting at them. Ever since then, I had a minor condition of anxiety issues, but now I’m happy with the way I am. Also, I now identify as a demiboy but who knows what’ll happen next! (Demiboy/14/Abrosexual)
Story #2538
When I came out to my mom, it was an accident actually lol. We were talking about movie characters and I accidentally told her I wasn’t into girls. She was super awesome about it, as I knew she would be, and then I told my dad, who was also lovely about it. I started dating a guy pretty soon after that, so that’s when I socially came out. (M/17/Gay)
Story #2537
When I came out, I was 17. I was hanging out with with my family; we were driving to my aunt’s wedding, which was the next day. We came across a beautiful restaurant that had a Pride Flag flowing in the wind. My dad said that we should turn around, and he was known to be extremely homophobic. My mom told him to ignore the “abomination”. When we went in to eat, I told my parents that I was polysexual. They looked at me as if I was some sort of alien. My mom shook her head in disappointment and my dad made gagging noises before turning around to order. I see a lot of homophobia in here and I finally moved out two and half months ago. Don’t lose hope, always love yourself! (Genderflux/questioning/20/Polysexual)