Growing Up Gay in South London

Growing up gay is hard enough as it is, as is growing up in the southern part of London, with its bad reputation. Putting both together can only lead to terrible things right?

For the beginning of my time growing up I had always experienced levels of bullying for being gay in both primary and high school, which often made my confidence drop and distracted me away from my studies. I would often try to stay home because of "sickness" but then get home and be absolutely fine. I would do this out of fear of another day coming, though at the time I would literally be so in fear that I would feel ill inside.

During my sixth form time was a lot better. There was still a little bit of fear in the back of my mind, however I was comfortable enough to come out, not only to my friends and the ones who supported me, but also to come out to my teachers who also helped me along my journey so much.

During the time of having my first "real" boyfriend, I would often be more scared to show any signs of affection to him whilst being out in public, based purely on the fear that is always in the back of my mind whenever around the south of London, which is my home town.

Even to this day I will always feel the small level of fear to be my true self around the area, however I am always developing and learning that the people around me aren't always out to judge me. Yes there will always be the few "haters" along the way, but its how we overcome those obstacles which truly makes us who we are.

Growing from my childhood of being bullied for how I was has really helped me in my later years to become more resilient towards hurtful words and actions, giving me a "thicker skin" against negativity. It has also helped me realise that the reasoning behind their bullying was due to their background and how they've known life.