So, I shall expand on my 'coming out' journey by adding my parents to this thread to save starting another.
I went home to my parents house yesterday [still there right now, as a matter of fact] on a visit for my sister's birthday. I had taken with me a tool I was planning on using to bring up the subject of my situation; my letter of referral to a psychiatrist.
So, I waited til my sister had gone up to her room, and til my dad went into the kitchen to make dinner, and I was left in the living room with my mum while watching the England vs Algeria match with a beer in hand.
I brought out the letter and showed it to her, and when she asked why I had been referred to them, I mentioned I had 'the depressions', and that I'm just 'a barrel of laughs, me!'. :p Then she asked how she would go and ask about depression, since she suspects bipolar in herself, so I gave her advice in that regard, which opened the topic nicely. I said I had been diagnosed with moderate-severe depression and that I'd refused meds since we think we know the problem. And when she asked about that, I took her back to a few months ago; I had explained to her that I felt in the wrong body and stuff like that then. This time, however, I mentioned that its causing me some distress and that I'm seeking help for my 'issues'. When I asked her if she understood me and what I meant, she replied with [and sorry, I fear only Brits will understand this reference] "Yeah; you're like Hayley in Coronation Street, only the other way around, if you know what I mean." And it was said with a small smile, probably more coz she proved she understood what I was going on about in ways that was relevant to her, xD
Anyway, she seemed to take that quite well, and I took it a little further, starting on the topic of names. I said to her that years ago, even before all of this, I had issues with my given name, and how it felt like a mouthful of sand when I had to say it, and how it made me cringe a little inside when I heard it, and that I had preferred the name I would have had if they knew I was a boy.
When I said this, she said "what, Aaron?", to which I replied 'yes', and I saw a little smile in her eyes with an almost retrospective look in her eye. I said it felt better, and even my friends agree that it suits better. She didn't take it badly at all.
I went on to mention I was getting a fertility test soon [since that will help me plan out my life a little more depending on the result, since I do want kids at some point] and that since I was on chemo 2 years ago, it gave me a relevant point of enquiry to use to ask my doctor to arrange a test without hesitation. Chemo is a valid excuse to doubt one's fertility. xD And then we chatted on that for a bit.
Then dad came in and we resumed the match on TV. xD
Later on, I was up in my sister's room [used to be our shared room], and my dad comes up and asks me about the chemo I was on, since my mum was getting it muddled up in a discussion they were having. xD So I went downstairs and set her straight, and it turns out it was the topic since mum told dad what I had told her earlier [which was actually my plan all along xD] and he had also taken it really well at this point; no sort of funny looks, no patronising comments/glares, no different ANYTHING.
Mum even started talking about what she and her sister would have been called if THEY were born boys, and then we were all talking about family names in general. xD Had a good long convo and a laugh, and the atmosphere was pretty warm.
[Oh, and by the way, I had come out to my sister a couple of weeks back, and so she knows as well, and she didn't bat an eyelid. xD She even asked me "you expected me to be weirded out, didn't you? xD But, well, I'm not, coz that's just me. xD" I love my lil sis. ^^]
Promising?
