No matter what your friends or familys religious or what you perceive to be their personal opinions be true to yourself. Dont attempt to convince yourself youre straight. In any way shape or form whether its attempting to get a girlfriend. "praying away the gay" as some conservative groups would push for. or attempting to condition yourself to be aroused by the opposite to which you actually are. In the end you wont achieve anything and are likely to get depressed by the lack of results. Sexuality is not a choice Once you have accepeted yourself for what you are. You can try telling those around you. This is a very daunting process. Take your time. If your friends are true ones they will accept you for whatever you are. In all honesty this can be a difficult process and the first person you tell is genuinely a leap of faith. If the accept you, then you gain confidence and will be more comfortable revealing the truth to others. Luckily my best friend was amazing in this respect. This should be no problem for a family, though it frequently can be between fathers and sons in my experience. Take your time and allow them to come to terms with what you have told them dont push things before they are ready. Once this has been done you will feel a weight has been lifted. This was very true for me. As i did over eat since then i havent and have rather rapidly lost weight in 6 months having gone from a size 42" to 34". How this makes your life easier/better will obviously vary from person to person but all tend to agree that it will effect your life. If on the offchance some friends do not accept you then this has been useful. If they cant accept you for who you are you dont want them in your life. Could you honestly count on these people. As I found myself saying to a friend: "If you honestly dont like me for whatever reason than i respect that. But if you dont wanna hang out any more because im gay or what other people may think then god Pete i dont even wanna know you Hope this was helpful in some way to a few people
