This Thanksgiving will be my first holiday with the extended family since I came out widely on Facebook two months ago. I picked that time to come out for several reasons:

I was already out to about 200 people (I have two Facebook accounts and I came out on the one that didn't have any family several months earlier). It started getting difficult to switch back and forth between being out with some people and closeted with others.
-About two weeks before I came out my cousin's very witty and perceptive wife (always the first to peg someone as pregnant) called me out on it. I mentioned something about one of her kids hitting the awkward-looking phase. She side-eyed me, smirked, and said, "So are you." Ha! I admitted it, and she was pretty cool about it. I realized that either I wasn't trying very hard to cover it up anymore or the changes were starting to show. Probably a little of both.
-I wanted everyone in the family who didn't know to have plenty of time to process the news because, as far as I know, I'm the only one in the family to fit under the umbrella of LGBTQ. I've always thought holidays would be a terrible time to come out because the people who may have only minor issue with it might be more upset for "ruining the holiday by making it all about YOU!"

I'm really hoping things go well. I know at least a few people are solidly in my corner. Is anyone else seeing their family for the first time since coming out? For those of you who have been through it already, any stories you'd like to share or words of wisdom?

Quote from: Daisy Jane on November 20, 2016, 10:44:40 PMI've always thought holidays would be a terrible time to come out because the people who may have only minor issue with it might be more upset for "ruining the holiday by making it all about YOU!"

People who do this often do this anyway.  Last Christmas, I was with my dad's relatives, and me making a single comment about how his unreliable behavior had affected my life recently turned into a procession of insults which they'd all been saving up about how I was this awful son who had killed his father and caused his heart problems.  My dad is the reason I have PTSD, so...

I wouldn't worry about it.  As long as you're not constantly drawing attention to it and have sat down with as many people as you can and explained it to eliminate the novelty factor, it shouldn't be something to center conversation around...

We don't have much in the way of infighting. Having said that, they're a little on the conservative side and this is coming out of left field for them, so I'm a little uncertain about how I'll be received.