Gus Kenworthy Quotes

I spent 24 years in the closet wanting to talk so desperately about who I was and what I am but too afraid to.

Before I came out, the thought of someone calling me gay, even when I knew very well that I was, was petrifying.

I was terrified about people knowing I was gay. I'd cringe inside at the idea that they'd be talking behind my back.

I have a coming-out story that's probably very similar to lots of people who are my age: the fear of being rejected, the fear of losing your family and friends. You know, I worked through all of that, and that fear, and what that does to you, is pretty profound.

I had a lot of fear about coming out as a kid.

I don't think closeted homosexual morticians have the market cornered on self-loathing or sense of shame.

I watched pretty much every coming out video on YouTube that has ever been posted; I watched it in between 14 and a half and 15. Those coming out videos, and those people on YouTube, those brave, brave, brave people on YouTube, without them, I don't know where I'd be.

When you're in the closet, you feel like the sky will fall down if anyone finds out. A lot of the fear is self-generated.

What's it like to figure out you're gay and then begin the process of coming out? Well, for most of my life, I felt doomed. I could imagine no path that would allow me to realize my authentic self. I felt the need to lie, even to myself, insisting: I am straight.

I knew I was different when I was about six years of age but I just knew that I wasn't like everybody else. I mean I wasn't like the other kids. I didn't know what that was. But I guess it was when I was in seventh or eighth grade, I'm like, 'Hey, something's wrong here.'

I realize it's a cliche, almost, that coming out of the closet is a very healthy and empowering thing to do, but for me, it really has been a truly wonderful thing.

Since I came out of the closet, I've gotten to just really be myself and feel authentic and honest and genuine. It's just been a huge relief for me competitively.

I do wish, when I was younger, that I knew that I was gay. It would have made things a lot clearer for me. Really. Looking back on it, it was so obvious, but it never really dawned on me. Socially, I felt like I didn't know how to be and who to be. If I had known back then, it would have given me more self-confidence.

I remember just calling myself gay was a big step for me, and I remember being in the bathroom brushing my teeth, testing out to myself in the mirror, saying, 'I am gay,' and seeing if the world was going to stop or if the ceiling would fall in on me.

I was 15 years old when I came out.

I've always been comfortable with my gayness, but I was intimidated by the social anxiety.

I want to continue to use my platform to tell my story to let young people that are struggling with their sexuality or identity know they are not alone, and it will get better.

It's great to be out and proud.

You live with the fear people might find out. Then you actually have the courage to tell people and they go, I don't think you are gay. It's enough to drive you crazy.

Honestly, I never needed a mask to go onstage. It was me who was there, and it was always what I felt, based on what I had learned at home, in my religion, and from society. I clung to that: 'This is me, it has to be me.' And if I had an encounter with someone of the same sex, I looked away.

Personally, coming out was one of the most important things I've ever done, lifting from my shoulders the millstone of lies that I hadn't even realized I was carrying.

I was conveniently bisexual for a long time, and then I went, 'Come on, who am I kidding?' And I have to say, it was the single biggest step I took toward emotional well-being, to stop feeling like I had to hide who I am.

I think it's always good for gay people to come out, but it's also understandable why people might choose not to do so.

If a bullet should enter my brain, let that bullet destroy every closet door.

Life is just more comfortable if you're honest and open about everything. I spent so many years being in the closet about one thing or another.