First, they usually realize that they have special feelings for someone of the same sex. However, at this stage, they do not think about being "crooked". Next, they start to respond to the feelings. Some of them get lucky enough to be grown up surrounded by healthy examples of being gay, lesbian or bisexual. Thus they are more likely to feel comfortable with their first feeling toward someone of their own sex. Nevertheless, some are not that lucky. They usually get very negative messages about being queer kids. Eventually, they will undergo another stage of internal conflict, a period of self denial before they accept themselves. That is the time when most queer kids feel lost and helpless. Many of them spend a long time trying to bury their same-sex feelings to fit into the "normal society". After this stage, some of them start to recognize their own identities. Seeing the differences between themselves and other youth, they try to be honest with themselves and develop confidence. Finally, they will come to self-acceptance, feeling relaxed about who they are. It is a significant journey from inner conflict to self-acceptance. During the process, these queer kids faced many challenges, even after self-acceptance, the challenges still exist. (Bass, 15-27).
The challenges .
Queer kids may be in denial. Because of the heterosexual and antihomosexual environment of home, school, church, and society, the queer kids face difficulty in finding supports. (Owen, 54) Societal, political, and religious intolerance is the main challenge for the queer kids. Some of society is conservative; most people will avoid talking about the topic on homosexuality and bisexuality. The public assume that all youths are "innocent and sexless" (Owens, 55), therefore, queer kids are invisible to them. "The mass media have also been one of the major heterosexism." (Owen, 55) The media portrays homosexuality and bisexuality as abnormal and immoral.
