I really can't handle being in the closet as trans much longer. The only thing holding me together is my cat. It's ridiculous. I'm not getting any work done for school (I have accepted that I will be failing my second semester) and am becoming depressed faster and faster. I have a therapist to talk to about gender stuff but I've only seen her three times. I want to tell my aunt or my sister but I can't figure out which one. I would talk to my parents but I'm honestly not sure how my dad would react and my mom is transphobic. My aunt is nice and I talk to her occasionally, but my immediate family will go on vacation with her family every year sometimes. Which would make things awkward.... She also lives in another state. My sister is 17, I am 19. She would accept me but I'm worried that if I tell her about my issues that would create stress for her since she is already in a very demanding high school.
It's important to build up a support system of trusted people before you come out to those closest to you such as your parents. A good idea if you're first coming out is to tell someone who you trust, but you could stand to lose if it goes wrong. For instance, do you have any friends who you trust but you're not particularly close to anymore? If so, you could try coming out to these people/this person, as they will probably accept you, but if they don't, it won't hurt you as much as if, say, you're parents didn't accept you. After you come out to these people, telling your aunt and sister sounds like a pretty good idea - you decide which you want to tell first. If/when you come out to them, make sure that they know that it's your story to share and your adventure to deal with, that they shouldn't stress over it and have no right to tell your parents or anyone else unless you ask them to. Anyway, I hope this helped. Feel free to let me know if you have any questions. Good luck!
You might sort of float a test balloon. So, for instance, you could bring up a trans topic (not hard right now considering how much trans things have been in the news lately) with your aunt and see how she reacts just to kind of see what you’re working with.
