DAN, 25, JOURNALIST, COLCHESTER
MY COMING OUT was three things: anti-climactic, anticipated and accepted. I was a latecomer to the party, apart from a confusing blip in primary school where I would try to go as high as I could on the swing in my back garden in an effort to catch a glimpse of my best friend through his window a few doors down. But surprisingly I didn’t understand my feelings towards other guys until my mid-to-late teens. I struggled to come to terms with myself and questioned what this meant for my future. I punished myself for my “failing” without mercy, raging with pre-emptive visions of abandonment that convinced me to keep things quiet; to not be me. When I stopped struggling and realised this part of me was never going away — that I didn’t actually want it to — things began to feel more positive. Despite this, the fears of the potential repercussions of coming out still weighed heavy on my mind.
DAN’S FEARS ABOUT COMING OUT PROVED UNFOUNDED — EVERYONE SEEMED TO KNOW ALREADY THAT HE WAS GAY