No. I was very lucky that the five or six people I am out to took the news well, and we are all still friends. I think it may have helped that all of them are also LGBT.
I lost one friend, but our friendship was already out the door anyways lol. At the time, I thought I was bisexual because I was still trying to hold on to heterosexuality and heteronormativity in order to feel safe and relatable to other people in my life (even though it wasn’t me at all). But anyways, I told a friend over a text conversation (many years ago) because the topic came up, and she just kind of ignored me and never texted me back. It was the last time we talked until recently when she decided she wanted to be nosy and see what I’m up to. I didn’t respond lol, no thanks. Other than that, my friends have been supportive, and when I came out to them in the past, their responses are usually, “Oh that’s okay! I already knew that anyways!” Or “I know!” Haha... Also, just to clarify...I’m not trying to disrespect bisexuality in any way with what I said above. I respect those who are bisexual because it is indeed a valid sexual orientation for many. But for me it was a transition phase where I felt safe until I was fully able to accept that I’m a lesbian. Just throwing it out there because I’m not tryina throw anyone shade.
No worries. Bisexuality is a stepping-stone for some and a final destination for others so it's cool.
Actually, coming out improved my friendships. I was able to be completely honest and authentic for the first time and give my all to these important people, rather than 70-80%. It no longer felt like there was a no-go area between us. A true friend will not make an issue out of your sexuality, and if a friend is not true, what's the point?
Yes, I lost my best friend as she insisted I needed to ask God for help. Everyone else was accepting.
I lost some friends. But that made me realize that they were not as close to me as I thought that they were. If they made the decision to not accept me then they were not my friends to begin with.
I didn't. At least not those that I've told. But I was afraid that I would, and the first friend that I came out to told me that I probably wouldn't hang out with people who were fairly open minded to begin with and that I shouldn't worry too much about it. This obviously doesn't apply to everyone, given that we lead very different lives and are in contact with different types of people, but it meant a lot to me at the time and still means a lot to me now. I thought I'd share that thought with you guys in case someone needed it.
I did, some of them left my life slowly like stopped talking to me or unfriend me on Facebook. But actually I lost contact with most of people I had come out to, for different reasons. And I am glad that happened and I don't want to come out to someone who I see on a daily basis because no matter how much that person loves me, I feel he/she won't fully accept me and may look down on me even in the slightest way. But remember I am from Syria so that's typical here and not parallel to the U.S.
I have always been openly bisexual, as in all of my friends knew this was the case, but I had A LOT of lesbian friends. When I started dating my husband, I lost them all. It was a leading them on type of thing, they knew from the start. It’s interesting to see it from the other side. It was really hard to lose all of my closest friends just for loving someone.
No, I think it even made my friendships with people I came out to stronger. Except for one guy, I don't talk to him that much now, but the reason is different than my coming out.
Yeah, I lost about half of them and I used to get bullied too. But I went to a very conservative Christian high school and we were always told that being LGBT is an abomination so I guess I shouldn't have expected different. It was mostly just stares and dirty looks, being called names or laughed at...people also went to very great lengths to ignore me. I remember I used to be good friends with a girl until I came out. We used to sit together every math lesson but after I came out, I tried to sit with her again and she got up and moved away...my group of friends and I did get a plastic Coke bottle thrown at us once too. A lot of the teachers would single me out in class. I remember once, we had to write an essay giving advice on how to be Christ-like. So in one of my paragraphs, I said that we shouldn't be homophobic or transphobic because Jesus preached love, not hate. And the teacher spent a whole period ranting about homosexuality and asking me questions Jesus' sacrifice and if I thought it was all in vain. I still remember that she wrote, "Remember Satan appeared as an angel of light," on my essay draft and I still have no idea what she was trying to say XD In my last year of schooling, I found a new group to hang out with and it was like having our own little GSA (3 gay guys, 12 bisexuals, 2 straight people and 1 non-binary! XD). We didn't even create the group knowing the majority of us were LGBT. We were just all kids who'd been bullied and ostracized so we chose to stick together. In a way, I miss my old high school days because I had so many good friends but in another more accurate way, I'm really fucking glad to be out of high school lol
Nah. The people who befriend me in the first place aren't expecting anything close to traditional, so I feel like that's one bullet dodged. Women friends seem to pick up on it often, while guys are always surprised.
In a thread in Later in Life, @brainwashed said he noticed the cogs turning when he mentioned to a friend that he is gay and I've definitely seen that before. In that moment, while they are processing the news, you get a feeling of anxiety, but it usually passes as they come to terms with what you've just told them.
yeah, happened. but I lost even more friends when I admitted to have depression. which probably means they haven't been real friends from the start.
I didn't lose any friends coming out- prospective friends, or acquaintances, maybe, but I don't really care much about their reactions. I've always been more of an 'my pace, my way' kinda person. I came out pretty early into meeting my friends (I lost contact with most of my friends since I graduated from secondary school- sorta like (pre) high school?), and me coming out actually made my friendships form faster, in some cases. I've got an entire group of friends who are all bent, except for one- we think she's just aromantic, lol. I'm pretty lucky to study among people who are more accepting- there are a few homophobes in class, but I get along with them fine. I argue with one about politics once in a while, so LGBTQ+ naturally comes up, and the other...well, I almost started a class-wide war over sexuality once. It was then that I really knew who would stand by my side during tough times. (These two are separate from my group of very gay friends- we're in different courses now)
