I did it!(!) November 17th at 1:20AM is the exact time I came out to my first person and it was my best friend.:icon_bigg I can't begin to express my gratitude to the EC community for helping me get to this step. Everyone was so supportive and helpful. I can't believe I ever doubted my best friend's loyalty. Time and time again she's proven she's the sister I wish I had and the truest friend anyone can ask for. She accepted me right on the spot and stayed up with me all night helping me sort through all my feelings. Through out our entire friendship she has stood up for me and vowed to continue to do so...can't buy that kind of friendship or find it just anywhere (*hug*) I feel so blessed and happy now. I'm now out to 3 people and they all took it well. I would really like to come out to my family but I don't think I'm ready yet. One more thing on my wishlist is to start dating but I think I'm still a little afraid. :icon_sad: I can't help but feel so self-conscious right now. I just got braces on and feel a little shy about them. My friends have been so encouraging of me in the past with dating and I'm sure they will continue to do so once they know I'm gay but it's just hard being the average looking girl in the group of supermodel looking friends. I know they mean well and love me for all the reasons you should love someone but still... Any words of advice? Have you guys ever felt self-conscious? And how did you get over it? What would you think about dating someone with braces? How critical are your friends concerning your partner's looks? Would you dump your partner based on your friends reactions?
Yes, I've always felt self-conscious of different things. From my body image (ew, too thin) to my acne (ugh, so much). Ultimately, I just got over it by realizing there are more important things in life to worry about. Appearances, although to the general public mean a HUGE deal, they mean to me what I make of them. Pick your battles. I wouldn't mind dating someone with braces as long as it was temporary. I might get annoyed by month 6 or year 1 if they still had them. For better worse, physical contact is an important feature in a relationship. Braces, from kissing to oral sex, interfere with this. As I said, on the short-term it would matter little. But for a lifetime, I would say it begins to be one of those obnoxious healthstyles that inhibit living rather than improve it (like vegetarianism-- don't get me started on that...). Somewhat critical. But they're just friends. We giggle about how silly or sexy past boyfriends looked, just for laughs. When it comes to the present, they offer the opinions and warnings but recognize when it is not their part to continue. Really depends on the partner and friend. If I was questioning a boyfriend's excessive libertine beliefs or annoyed by their obsessive focus on Harry Potter, and then these feelings were confirmed by a friend, then I might take serious consideration to it. ^ LOL, bad examples. I mean something like alcohol or lifestyle. If I think trust in them would be misplaced because of their alcohol consumption or our lifestyles of party-hardy to classiness did not match then those are factors worthy enough to take another opinion or two on.
