“Some nights, I’d cry and stare at the ceiling. I didn’t like looking at my chest in the mirror. I hated leaving the house. I felt forced to wear a mask every day. I wanted a world that reflected me, a rainbow world with limitless colors.”
‘I don’t want to be a man. And I don’t want to be a woman.’ I wanted to be free of the binary. Everything CLICKED’: Non-binary person shares self-discovery journey, ‘I’m finally at home in my body’
I Didn’t Know I Was Autistic Until Age 25, And It Was Terrifying
“After spending my entire life reassuring myself I’m not crazy, I hid my secret from everyone.”
‘I was IMMEDIATELY sent to conversion therapy and a ‘sexual-healing’ facility. I had to blend in with ‘good Christian folk.’: Trans person finds their identity, ‘Living authentically gives me freedom’
“After discovering our relationship, her parents locked her inside her home, got her fired from her job, removed all access to any phones, internet, or car. My parents saw my actions as sinful, and deserving of punishment.”
‘Is something wrong?’ my wife asked. ‘We need to talk.’ I told myself I’d stop thinking about being gay if I had a kid.’: Gay dad comes out of the closet, ‘I regret not doing it sooner’
“‘You’re gay, you’re gay.” My thoughts were constant. But I needed to start a family. I told myself I’d stop thinking about being gay if I had a kid.”
‘I only had sex once!’ I became a missing teen mom. Posters of me were up all over town.’: Woman escapes abusive relationship, graduates college as first-generation LGBT student
“‘Don’t even THINK about being with a woman!’ I kept my only ‘girl on girl’ relationship hush-hush. And then I met him. He convinced me to run away from home.”
‘Are you my birth mom?’ I fought tears. ‘She searched all over for a Daddy and Papa who’d take care of you.’: Dads discuss blessing of open adoption
“‘I don’t have a mother.’ They see ‘mommies’ come to pick their kids up every day. ‘We searched everywhere for you, baby.’”
‘She was hit by a tractor. She didn’t feel anything.’ I started crying hysterically. She was my soulmate, how was I supposed to move on?’: Woman with autism finds ‘special and strong bonds’ in cats
“The farmer didn’t notice. His daughter had found her body an hour later and put her in our driveway because she knew she was my cat. It was my worst nightmare coming true. I started screaming NOOO and crying hysterically.”
‘Dad repeated, ‘I put it in his hands!’ How could he have given his son lethal narcotics? I was frozen in shock.’: Man recounts brother’s overdose, homophobia, ‘Learn from your hardships’
“My father would call me ‘sissy’ and ‘mama’s boy,’ and it hurt. A lot. Words like these never leave you. But it forced me to rise up.”
‘I guess you’re wondering about the results.’ It was like lightbulb after lightbulb going off.’: After diagnosis, woman advocates for autism in girls, ‘Representation matters’
“I’ve felt different my whole life. By high school, I was beginning to figure out I was queer. I’d assumed that was the thing ‘different’ about me. That’s not what happened. I was different at my core.”
‘Please give me a miracle. Turn me into a girl overnight.’ I kept it a secret. I was on a train headed for a dead end.’: Transgender teen embraces identity after life-long battle, ‘I am finally me’
“My family began deteriorating. My parents separated. My mom went from a healthy, loving parent to an alcoholic who couldn’t care for herself. She disappeared, temporarily, and then forever. I accepted I would have to continue living in fear and shame.”
