What are some positives about being LGBT?

For me personally, having a sexuality different from the norm encouraged me to educate myself about lgbt+ issues, mental health, bullying, and just to become a more open-mined person in general. I've said some pretty nasty things to people who were different from me in the past, but realizing that I was different from everybody else allowed me to take a step back and be more accepting of everyone.

 

It's gotten me a group of friends that chances are, I wouldn't have met if we hadn't met under the circumstances that we were LGBT people. I've also realized that I really don't want to be alone later in life like I thought I did before realizing I was Gay and personally feel more hopeful as a result. I also feel like it's made me a more open-minded person and be more accepting of people.

 

Being different, kinda feels special.

 

It's made me far more compassionate and open-minded, and I can relate more with minorities.

 

You don't have to pretend to be special. You are.
And by "special" I don't mean like in a bad way, I mean in the best way possible.

Maybe you could even be a hero or a role model for someone. Who knows?

 

The biggest positive is being true to yourself. After that, I would say LGBT on a whole are more open-minded and accepting of others. I don't necessarily feel 'special' because I am lesbian, but I do feel proud.

 

I would say that being gay has made me stronger, more confident, more empathetic, more kind. It's taught me how to really trust people, how to believe in people, and when necessary how to forgive people. It gave me enough distance on traditional societal expectations to be able to step outside a bit and think--hmm, that's not going to work for me. So what do I really want? and what am I willing to do to get it? It made me face my deepest fear, a fear a younger me tried to kill himself to avoid, and walk through it relatively unscathed. Can you imagine how much better the world would be if everyone got the chance to face their deepest fear and see that life goes on?

And then being gay brought me a community of people like myself, people who are courageous and kind and funny and strong. People who looked out at the world and saw that they could live a life of love and honesty but only if they were willing to risk everything to get it, and made the right choice. People who constantly amaze me with their bravery and resilience, not to mention their wit and charm. And I can find them wherever I go and be told basically "oh, you're one of us, come with me". And of course being gay brought me my husband of eighteen years. It brought me the opportunity to go to bed every night thinking I couldn't possibly love more than I do now, and wake up in the morning to find that I do.

 

These are some positives about being LGBTQ for me:

Before being out, I framed a lot of my decisions and choices with the question of how my actions would hold up to other people's expectations of me. Being out now, it's like opening Pandora's box for me. It was freeing. Having already gone against the grain in such a big way, I find it easier to make other life decisions more for myself than for others. I've already climbed the mountain, so now the molehills are easy.

Being gay has let me see life through a lens I don't think I would have had as a straight African American male in middle class America. It has opened my eyes to other people who are oppressed and made me more empathetic.

One thing I'm thankful for is that I feel being gay allowed me to see more clearly. It put what seemed obviously true to me in direct conflict with the values most of society held while I was growing up. I think that made me question fundamental assumptions about the world in a way that I wouldn't have had my life fallen more in line with society's expectations.

 

No unwanted pregnancies. Much more empathy toward other marginalized people.

 

One big plus for me is no one knowing who I'm attracted to. I always see my straight step sisters getting bugged about the guys they're into. I'm glad I'm not going through that.

 

For me there are two great benefits of being gay. The first is that it makes me a more unique, understanding, and compassionate person. As a white male, I think it's good that there is something about me that puts me in a minority group as it allows me to better empathize with people who are different from me. This has also led to much greater self-reflection and thought about the kind of person that I want to be.

The second, and even more significant benefit, is that it's allowed me to meet a few truly spectacular people who I couldn't imagine not having in my life. I think dealing with adversity makes people better and I can honestly say that while I don't know many LGBT people, the ones that I've had the privilege to know on a more personal level are simply great.

 

While there is lots of hate, there is lots of support out there...like this site for instance...

---------- Post added 29th Jan 2017 at 10:01 PM ----------

This mostly only applies in first world countries though.

 

I'm not reading any of the previous replies before I write mine (because I want my reply to be mine so sorry of this seems like a repeat at all :lol:

The positives about being a member of the LBGT community for me are the fact that I feel more unique, despite the fact I'm surrounded by so many people like me, and it's made me more open minded about other minorities that don't exactly pertain to me (race, trans, disability, etc) and made me educate myself on every abused minority so that I can be a more compassionate and better person.

Although I'm still closeted, I truly believe that accepting myself for who I am has made my life so much better, I feel better every day I acknowledge myself more, the cons of this are that because I'm so closeted I cant be my true self - even around my best friends, but thats only because of my coming-out paranoia.

LGBTQ+ means a lot to me, I used to be a third-person viewer of this site and many similar ones, and lately on social media (Twitter & tumblr) where nobody knows me in real life I have become my true self and I've become part of this beautiful community where everyone knows what you're going through and some people have experienced/are experiencing the same things as you, so you always have an ear.

I'm trying to post more on this site, and eventually use this site to help myself come out to my family and friends, so that's a huge positive to me about being LGBT.

Basically what i'm trying to say is the community is the main positive to me

 

Positives about being LGBT+:

-Being a more nice and kind person
-Not being consumed with hatred
-Being a part of a diverse community
-Being a part of a kind, inclusive, and accepting community (not all of the community but some of it)
-More compassion for others
-Having a receptive mind
-Being more willing to accept others instead of putting them down
-Getting to know a community that has struggled with similar issues

 

Everybody is putting serious answers, and everything that came to my mind is somewhat jokey :lol:

*No kids
* Double wardrobe :lol:
* Perhaps both being guys, we'd be more on the same wavelength, relationship wise? (Kinda a shot in the dark lol)
*Met some cool peeps
* Being more open minded
* Makes me critically think about the stuff I hear

 

I think being LBGT has made me take a magnifying glass to myself. I know more intricate details about how my mind works. I am careful about how I speak to others because I understand how important an opinion can be. I'm cautious, but unwavering, because I've spent so long trying to understand myself, that now I know exactly what my core values are.
Also boobs. Girls have boobs and I like that. A lot.

 

I don't know if that's a positive thing but I like that I'm not predictable..im not the person that everyone expect me to be!

 

Despite the many unfortunate aspects of being trans, I am grateful that it has forced me to see the world in different perspectives. Being a part of the LGBT community is a pivotal part of my life and has made me far more empathetic towards gay and trans people alike.

Being transgender isn't the "end all be all" for me. I am still a person. And once transition is over, it will just be another chapter in my story. As one transguy put it, it is just another interesting thing about you.

I also feel I am less effected by gender and sexuality expectations, have a very strong grip on my identity, and am afforded more compassion and freedom. These are all positives that I would not have if I were not, well, the way I am.