I want to come out, eventually, but I also want to do it the right way? I've had a couple of big screw-ups in the last few years, and I don't want this to be another thing I mess up. My family knows I'm gay, same with my best friend, but I want my friends and coworkers to know too. The thing is, though, that most of my friends are really athletic jock-type guys, and I don't know how they'd handle it in the locker room. I just know that I'm tired of them not really knowing the real me. I'm tired of pretending. Advice?
Well you might tell, and that they are not your type... and you're still the same person... do you know if there might be homophobic people amongst them ?
I feel like I'm kind of in the same place. I came out to a few people (some of my family, some close friends) a little over a year ago...and then I kinda stopped. I feel like the "right" way to do it is the way that's authentic or genuine to me, but I've grown up and am living and working in a small town. Some of my friends and most of my coworkers are really conservative people, and I've become an expert at blending in. I guess I'm still trying to figure out what "authentic" and "genuine" look like? I feel like I hold back because the truth will make other people uncomfortable, or that I'll be branded a predator, or that I'll lose the respect of people who are important to me--even though I recognize that all of that is unreasonable. Pretending is easy for me. It is safe and comfortable, but completely unfulfilling. Being honest is hard, and I've made plenty of mistakes, but I think (hope?) it's OK to screw up so long as I'm being true to myself (or at least trying to be true to myself). I'm taking it slowly, trying to remember that I can't control what other people believe or how they react, and trying to have faith that everything will be OK.
