Hi all, so I have a question for you. I don't think I'm anywhere near the stage "ready to come out to family" (I did to close friends though) but I was just curious. What is better when coming out? Just tell your parents straight away or somehow prepare them first? And by prepare I mean I have the rainbow bracelet so I could wear that, or leave gay book with clearly gay front cover on my table or find a gay (not too gay) movie I could watch with my dad...it could show the possible reaction to my coming out. Actually I already did one thing - I burn a DVD for my dad's girlfriend (Imagine Me and You - I guess lesbians will be familiar with this one). I told her that I have one great movie I recently watched and gave it to her, so I'm pretty curious if she will say anything about it. So what do you think? For those who already came out, what is your opinion? Saying it all at once or gradually preparing?
It really depends on your situation and what is more comfortable for you. I told my parents without preparation, but I was expecting a good/neutral reaction. If you aren't comfortable doing that you may want to leave hints, like the movie. I actually like the movie idea.
If you don't want to flat out tell them, then include hints about it. You could always send an email with resources.
I think testing the waters could be beneficial in some cases; if you are still depending on them or worried about your safety, though generally speaking, I think telling them flat out is easier and more simple.
I would say that it is better to just tell them. Subtlety is useful for getting them to ask you, but that is not always preferable anyway. Maybe ask them: "if you had an LGBT child, what would you do? Would you still love them (etc.)?" or something like that. That is a good way to start a conversation.
