To (most) of those friends and family who know, I have strengthened my relationship with them, and I feel safe being myself around them. This is probably the most pleasantly surprising consequence which happened very early on, and continues to this day. To feel loved, to feel accepted to the very core of my being, evokes a sense of thanksgiving and peace which suspends me in hope.
I feel comfortable in my own skin.. I do not feel I need to give an excuse for being who I am; for my hobbies; how I spend my free time. I don't care about having to talk about sports, which was a huge issue for me for many years.
I am more confident in myself; which manifests itself in better friendships; honesty; and just having more fun interacting with people. It gives me confidence in the workplace, that I can in fact complete a task efficiently, which allows me to calm down and have a sounder, calmer, and healthier mind.
I can be myself, most especially to those I have come out to. I can tell funny stories about myself and feel OK with it. Lately, telling my coming out stories and dating experiences has been a liberating and fun experience, therapeutic in many ways, and insightful, as I gather feedback from loved ones.
I now know what it is like to experience intense depression, and know that I have the coping skills to deal with multiple emotional events which inevitably will occur in life. I consider that crisis several years ago as my own personal mid-life crisis.... a crisis of identify which spanned my sexuality, my career choice, my spirituality, my religion, and all the other activities in my life that I was doing to create my 'identity'. In all, it shook the foundation of my life and forced me to re-evaluate, re-examine, and re-invent myself in order to feel at peace. I made it through that period a stronger and wiser person, to a place where I can fulfill my goals, and be a better person by serving those around me
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