When I was a child and a teen,
I was called a monster, an alien, and a weirdo by strangers.

At an age when I needed so much to belong, these words hurt more than swords.

It tuned me down overtime. It desaturated my personality. I learned that I could not both be myself and be accepted.

Now that I am older, I am trying to find back who I really was meant to be. Being myself isn’t just an instinct, it is a vital need. I cannot be with people whom I cannot be myself with anymore. It has become unbearable.

I know many of you here have had similar experiences and much worse.

I just wanted to tell you that
I see you
and you are not alone