Life (UN)Closeted: LGBTQ+ Coming Out Stories & Advice for living out and proud!

Coming out and being out is challenging enough. Then add to the mix your challenges with mental health and it could be potentially too much. So what do you do? You choose to thrive. A great example of this is our guest today, Dr. Zachary Stier who is thriving beyond his bi-polar diagnosis and embracing his life daily as a gay man, step-by-step, day-by-day. About Dr. Zachary Dr. Stier has been the...

Inclusivity doesn't have to be hard, it just has to be human. But to0 many humans today, think inclusivity is just too woke. Well, let's wake them up with the truth about inclusivity and how to have those tough conversations. Inclusivity and workplace culture expert Nate Shalev shares their insights on how this can work without it breaking down systems and relationships. About Nate Nate Shalev is...

You have to be hiding under a rock and not listening to not know that Trans voices are under attack which only means, the entire queer community is under attack. Giving voice to the Trans community, TJ Billard shares their new book Voices For Transgender Equality: Making Change In The Network Public Sphere. This is great episode to learn about why and how to support our trans brothers and sisters....

Imagine hiding your truth because of your work, your family, and more so out of your own fears of "Can this actually be me?" Today I have a candid conversation with Ron Thomas, actor, voice over professional, radio host, but overall a normal, everyday gay who was afraid to come out until he did. And if that sounds familiar then you will love this show as it is simply straight up truth talking abou...

Imagine being 19, just coming out, and heading to NYC - broadway to be exact - and all those dreams turn into a different dream you never would have imagined. Now, fast forward 35 years later and you let that twist of dream guide you through all the other coming out journeys that life has to offer. That's where we are arriving today with author, screenwriter, filmmaker and actor, Gregory G. Allen...

Were you raised to play it safe because you were afraid to cause others pain? Then, you decide to put on a happy face facade and instead of walking boldly through life, you held yourself back. Leaving the “unspeakable” feelings unspoken, until you finally decide to take a leap that might be your only chance to feel fully alive and to experience your new possibilities of what you are meant to be. I...

How do you step into an an attitude of being less hateful and more grateful when it comes to Christianity and LGBTQ+ individuals? You step beyond your diversity bias and stop practicing moral exclusions. Out and proud bisexual Amanda Udis-Kessler provides us with insights on how loving others and ourselves is the truest expression of floursing and being more christ like as LGBTQ+ individuals. All...

What do you do when you move from NYC to the Connecticut burbs to create LGBTQ+ Community? You literally create it yourself. Showing us the path on how to do that in any community, is Brian P. McGunagle founder of Westport Pride. Learn how he, his husband and kids are living out loud and proud in a small town community that has even battle the wars of book bans. About Brian Brian is the founder of...

From a very young age he knew he was different in spirit, two-spirits to be exact. Yet, he pushed through, did the things that were expected of him, and yet, never lost sight of the essence of who he was. While he left the world of music for a time, the music never left him and the kaleidoscope of his life finally caught back up to him, nudging him back into his passion of music, story telling, an...

When you know, you know, but when you act on what you know could take years. Transition Mentor, Wendy Cole shares her story of transitioning into her truth at age 67 to be the woman she always knew she was. Now she guides others to step into their rightful self, and take the journey of transition so that they can be authentically who they are meant to be and live a life filled with happiness. Abou...

It's Valentine's Day and time for some love and rejection. Let's hope more love than rejection. But, if have no agenda, and you learn to master rejection, then you can be happy and in love with yourself. Helping us give ourselves a little love this Valentine's Day is pop artist, Jaime Adrian, sharing his story of major pop star rejection and how he's learned to rebound to love himself. Plus he sha...

Love and connection. Who doesn't desire those things? Very few. So why is it so hard for us as humans, and especially LGBTQ+ beings to find it and keep it. It's starts by deliberately choosing to live authentically and doing the internal work so that love can show up. Guiding us today to that truth, is Moe Ari Brown, Hinge's (online dating app based on the premise that anyone looking for love shou...

You can't turn on the news these days without white supremacy and racism being part of the headline news. Yet, how we define both these things isn't just about the color of one's skin. And then, how we choose talk, or not talk about them is what is causing more strife on the planet. Roxy Manning, PhD and Sarah Peyton share with us in today's podcast how to have antiracist conversation and how to t...

Every day seven hundred children enter the foster care system in the United States, and thousands more live on the brink. In his new “truly revealing” (Hilary Clinton) memoir, SAFE: A Memoir of Fatherhood, Foster Care, and the Risks We Take for Family , longtime activist Mark Daley traces his, and his husbands unlikely journey to parenthood through the American foster care system, shining a spotli...

Do you really want to cheat on your spouse, significant other, boyfriend, or girlfriend? Maybe you love them but you need to venture out of the script of monogamy. It's time to step into the juicy, exciting, and scary world of coloring outside of the lines of your relationship while avoiding playing with fire. Dr. Joli Hamilton takes on a candid stroll through how to make your unhealthy relationsh...

"And in this corner we have an out, proud, wrestler." Wait, what? Wrestlers can be gay? Of course they can. We queers are everywhere, so let's celebrate with Ry Levey, film maker. His film Out In The Ring, showcases the hidden world of queer wrestlers and also parallels the nuances of the wrestling world imitate the queer world. From drag and performance art to the homoerotic costumes and position...

It's 2024 and I want to invite you as LGBTQ+ individuals to step into a life of Radical Integrity. But, what does that mean? How can it benefit you? Today we explore that concept with author, soul coach, and body-centered therapist River Faire. He candidly shares how living a life of radical integrity has changed his life for the better and how you can do the same. About River River Faire is a mul...

Imagine gaining and losing 50 to 75 pounds every two years as a teen. Miserable, right? The imagine at 38 years old discovering that you issues with food and weight were a symptom of a much deeper issue: your childhood sexual abuse. Today's Guest, Patty Cabot, author of Not That Girl Anymore, shares the tremendous effort, the suspension of doubt, and a steadfast belief that took to come out of her...

It's the most joyful time of the year...or is it? For many of us the holidays bring joy, joy, joy but then it also brings stress, frustration, and overwhelm. Yet, in life, we are the master of our own joy! Today we explore how to bring joy into our life by planting seeds or creating little breadcrumb moments, with the Joy Boss - Quinn O'Briant. In this episode you will discover the shortcuts to mo...

There's human experience that we will all face at some point. The trauma and tragedy of losing someone we love or care about. It is inevitable. When that moment comes, whether it is losing your family due to them not embracing you as LGBTQ, or actual loss of life due to an accident or disease, you have a choice - Ride or Die! Author Jarie Bolander shares his Ride or Die Journey with us today and i...

In a world of divisiveness, one thing remains constant to learning about humanity - being curious. To celebrate the 600th episode of Life (UN)Closeted, were going to invite you to realize, we all have genders, it more complicated than school science, shame and fears have no place in this discussion, and just because someone lives outside the box of your norm, doesn't mean they deserve your hate. S...

There's a lot of backlash, misunderstanding and confusion about gender identity, as if it is something brand new. In this candid conversation about trauma, sexual and gender identity, Ann Pellegrini and Avgi Saketopoulou share their book Gender Without Identity and the challenges we face in embracing all sexualities and genders. About Ann & Avgi ANN PELLEGRINI (they/them; she/her) is Professor...

Here it is, the day before Thanksgiving in the U.S. For most of us, this is a time of family, gratitude, and munch, munch, munch on amazing food. Yet, for many of us this can be a time of year that is challenging at best. You might be alone, not have a circle of friends, or you may just wonder if being LGBTQ+ is even worth it. Hey, snap out of it and listen to ways to be grateful this Thanksgiving...

Coming out is all about emotions and feelings. But what happens when you lean it the whole journey as a scrumptious experience. When you let your body, thoughts, images, and emotions come alive to the full potential of fully feeling you as you. Today, coach Juliette Karaman - the Feel Fully You coach, mentor, and guide shares four elements from her jewel box on how to life a fully free life feelin...

Life is a circus, a carnival, and sometimes it is simply the place you run away from because you realize, living a half-life just isn't worth it. Author, dad, business professional, recovering person of faith, who came into his truth during the COVID-19 pandemic and in his own way ran away from the circus that had become his life to live his truth as a gay man. He shares his story and his new memo...