Hello, all! It's been a while since I've tried anything like this. I think the last time I was on any kind of forum was when I was 18. At any rate, I'm hoping to make new friends and perhaps find courage in numbers. I work so much that it's hard to connect with others in a support group, so I figured this would be a good place to start. I'm not going to take up my entire intro thread with this, because it's not really the place, but I'm having a difficult time just being honest with people. I'm a product of a family that had some pretty darn horrible things to say about the LGBT community on a regular basis. On top of that, I was in the Army for seven years under DADT, so hiding and feeling like I MUST hide for my own well-being or safety is an overwhelming feeling I battle all the time. It's hard to beat down over 25 years of conditioning. Apart from that rather annoying aspect of life, things are pretty great! I have a very loving, understanding, and supportive partner. We've been together almost 8 years now and it's just fantastic. We're making a great life together in Germany with our two kitties (Mike and Peter...please spare me the stereotype comments...lol!). We travel, go to museums, concerts, movies, and love going to the bath houses over here. We also sometimes hike and camp, but hiking is more my thing than hers. Anyway, let me not ramble on too much. Thanks for taking the time to stop by and I look forward to "meeting" some new people. (!)
HI! Glad to hear you are doing better in life, and I hope you become more and more open and honest on EC! You will be surprised how many people on here are going through similar situations.
Thanks for the welcoming messages, everyone! It looks like many of you have been around a while. Have you found that this environment helps you to be more open or at least feel less alone?
