Fox | Finding A Safe Space | headspace

28th October, 2020    |    By  headspace    |     907

Fox shares their story about feeling secure in who you are. For many young people, it can be a really challenging experience figuring out who you are. This can mean exploring your gender identity and sexuality, which can lead to and uncomfortable feelings. “For me the biggest thing to overcome was that internalised shame and so it took me a long time to admit to myself that I might be bisexual.

” Having people around you who are accepting of you and understand what you’re going through can help your headspace. It’s important to know that there’s a strong LGBTIQA+ community to embrace and support you.

“I learned to see the beauty in who I was and who people in the LGBTIQA+ community are.” headspace has helped thousands of young people from the LGBTIQA+ community get the support they need. Learn more about the importance of finding a safe space to be who you are: headspace.org.au/not-always-glitter.

For more information and helpful tips, to find your nearest headspace centre or for online and telephone support, visit: https://headspace.org.au/ headspace National Youth Mental Health Foundation is funded by the Australian Government Department of Health. Subscribe to the headspace YouTube channel for more youth-focused mental health videos.


Also check the related topics:  

Sexuality & Gender

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Video Transcription

My name is Fox. I’m 23, and I identify as bisexual and gender-diverse. I’ve been gender non-conforming ever since I was a little kid.

I think with gender non-conforming, particularly in young children that we perceive to be female, there’s a certain level of room that you have to be a little tomboy. But when I got to high school and started to hit puberty, there was this sense from people around me of, “Okay, now it’s time to stop. Now it’s time to grow up.” I started to realize that maybe being the way I was might be a little bit different.

Girls that I had grown up with were starting to wear dresses, wear makeup, or just engage in different activities that I didn’t really feel like I understood properly. For me, the biggest thing to overcome was that internalized shame, and it took me a long time to admit to myself that I might be bisexual.

One day, when I was 19, I kind of woke up and thought, “I’ve got to come out to somebody so that I can’t backtrack anymore.” I learned to see the beauty in who I was and in who people in the LGBTQIA+ community are.

For young people who might be looking for support, the first point of call is to reach out to any friends you think might be safe to talk to. They might be more supportive than you think.

Today, I feel proud of who I am and secure in who I am. I don’t have this kind of sense of conflict in myself anymore about who I am or who I want to be.

Video by headspace