Name or Nick Name : Taryn Vanhout
Country or City you are from: : Pretoria, South Africa
Your Age : 29
Your Gender : female
What did you come out as? : Lesbian
What other words would you use to describe yourself? :
How old were you when you first realised your identity? : 15
How old were you when you first told someone? : 17, told my older sister
Did you plan it? If so, how? : no
What made you choose that person to tell? : It was inevitable that she would tell my parents, sparing me from doing it.
Can you remember exactly what you said? : Tanya, I’m gay
How did you feel? : relieved
What was the person’s reaction? : she accepted it, but then proceeded to vomit in the toilet
What did they say? : “I’m happy for you”
What was your relationship with the person like afterwards? : as stable as it was before
What’s it like now? : normal
If you’ve been outed unwillingly, who did it? : hehe .. my sister, but that was my original plan
What happened? : knowing that she cant keep her mouth shut, she told my mother and then my father.
What were peoples’ reactions? : My mother was in total denial, but my father said he had known it since an early age
If you’ve experienced homophobia etc, please give an example. : never
Since coming out how out are you at school? : not_applicable
Since coming out, how “out” are you at work? : all_out
Since coming out, how “out” are you with family? : all_out
Since coming out, how “out” are you with your friends? : all_out
What does being out mean to you? : Accept me and my choices, or deny yourself the chance of ever knowing me.
What differences, if any, did your cultural background make to your experience of coming out? : none
What does the concept of the closet mean to you? : being left in the dark
What advice would you give someone wanting to come out? : if people have a problem with your choices, they run the risk of never knowing what a great person you are. by lying to them about who you are, you are only lying to yourself. dont.
If you could do it all again, would you do it any differently? If so, how? : nope
Anything you want to add? : screw it, just do it!