Hello I'm scared of my future. I've gone through several therapists who have all encouraged me that the future would get better, but will it? I've worked so hard on learning to accept myself and become a part of the LGBTQ community, and the supreme court is probably going to take my rights to marry. I'm just tired of hope and thinking that things will get better, because it's looking clear to me that they aren't.
Hi there! Sometimes it looks and feels like that things are going in the wrong direction and the future doesn't look all that rosy. Keep in mind though that you have done incredible amounts of work to accept yourself and do things as part of the community that probably you didn't expect to be able to do. You are part of the LGBTQ+ community, which can be a source of strength. All the work you have put in to be comfortable and be yourself around others, counts more than anything. Nothing will ever change the fact and importance of your accomplishment. Things might not come to be as bleak as they might seem at the moment. (*hug*)
Hi pallf, I'm sorry to hear about what you're going through. We live in both terrible and extraordinary times.. It may seem odd to some, but I take comfort in the fact that every one, every generation, everywhere, has to live with some version of this. I look at it as my challenge to overcome it. Speaking from personal experience, I don't think it's healthy to pin your well being on things outside of your control. There will always be a new problem, a new challenge... sometimes it feels overwhelming. I think things can get better, and it's because we can make them better: For ourselves, for our loved ones, for our community... all of the people and situations we can directly affect. (Despite being non-religious, I live by Niebuhr's "Serenity Prayer," if you're familiar with it) So please take care of yourself first and foremost!!!
Hello, @pallf. I agree with what's already been stated: things may seem bleak right now, but there's no certainty that they will remain that way. We don't know what the future holds, and that can be incredibly scary; hard as it is, I think this is a good time to focus on the things that are within your power, and as the others have said--focus on the positive that you've accomplished. Whatever the future holds, no one can take those accomplishments from you. They are within you, as untamable as the weather. There is a phrase--I don't remember who originally said it, but I find it helps: "We cannot control the wind, but we can adjust our sails". I find it helps whenever I'm feeling overwhelmed with decisions outside of my control, because it's true; we can't control what happens outside of us, but we can control how we act/react to it; we can adapt. In essence, try not to brood on what's going on politically. I know this is hard, like I said--but for the sake of your mental health, it's better to cast it aside (at least until you're feeling strong enough to face it). In the meantime, be proud of yourself! You are part of the LGBT, you've overcome all sorts of obstacles in coming to accept this part of yourself. That, I think, is cause for celebration.
