Sorry but nobody can answer that question but you.  What we can say and make clear is that being gay, lesbian or bisexual is not bad or unhealthy. Sexual attraction is a normal, healthy part of sexuality and who you are as person, no matter what gender you are attracted to!

What is bad is the discrimination towards gay, lesbian, and bisexual people in our society. Discrimination is when someone is treated badly just because they are different. This is what can make high school very tough for all students.

If you would like to talk to someone about your feelings please call the Rainbow Resource Centre at 1-888-399-0005.  The call is private and you don’t have to be gay to call!  Please just remember that the more we learn to accept and love ourselves regardless of our sexual orientation, the happier we will be.

We say that sex is what you are born with between your legs, and gender is what you know yourself to be between your ears.

People get to choose what gender they identify as, this is called our gender identity. It is totally possible for someone’s gender not to match up with their sex. For example, someone could be born with a penis, but know themselves to be a girl on the inside. In this case, someone might choose to identify as transgender.

Someone can also identify as a boy (male), girl (female), both (transgender, intersexed) or neither (no label, just a person). We get to decide our own gender identity but society usually pressures us to be accept only male or female gender roles.

It is important that we accept people for who they are even when’s it’s different than what we expect. All identities should be valued equally as all people should be too, regardless of their gender or how they identify themselves. No one should be put down for who they see themselves as.

Yes, some people are born with a combination of both female and male genitalia.  Such people used to be called hermaphrodites, but are now known as intersexed.  As well, some people feel like they have both male and female genders within them and can identify as either gender. There are also some folks that identify as transgendered. It means that your birth sex does not match your core gender identity.  For example, imagine being born with boy parts, like a penis and testicles, but feeling in your brain like you’re a girl.

Society’s narrow gender roles for girls and guys can make many people feel very restricted.  Many like to gender-bend, or act out of their socially prescribed gender. Finally, there are some people that may not identify with either male or female gender, and instead may prefer to relate simply as people.

No it is not strange at all! Growing up is very hard for both boys and girls because we often feel like we have to fit into a gender role. A gender role is a set of expectations that society has for girls and boys. For example, girls are supposed to like cooking and guys are supposed to like sports. These expectations are just not reality! Lots of girls like sports, and lots of boys like to cook!

Gender roles make many people feel like they have to behave and look a certain way which can be very confusing if it isn’t how we truly feel about ourselves. Some individuals refer to themselves as transgendered. For some this may mean they feel like both genders, or for others it may mean that they feel free to express themselves as neither male nor female.

Our self-identity (how we see ourselves) is one of the most difficult parts of ourselves to understand and to explain to other people. It can be sometimes very difficult to feel different from our peers. If you need to talk to someone about gender identity you can call the Rainbow Resource Centre at the LGBTTQ Info Line 284-5208 or 1-888-399-0005 from 7:30 to 10 pm.

Yes, clothes can often be used as a way to express ourselves, and the way we express ourselves is absolutely part of our sexuality.  The way we dress is one way we communicate with the world around us and share parts of our identity. Keep in mind, identity is a unique, complicated, ever-evolving thing that only we ourselves get to define (& redefine) over time.

It is important to remember that what we wear is not an expression of whether or not we are ready or interested in sex.  That information could only come from a conversation of some sort.  We can use clothing, however, to communicate bits of our personality or values we hold.  We can use dress as a way to stand out or fit in (or anywhere in between).