On Tuesday, February 21, 2023, the LGBT National Help Center will officially launched its newest program, the LGBT National Coming Out Support Hotline.  The brand-new hotline focuses specifically on the concerns of those who are struggling with coming out issues (regardless of age, or how each person defines that process).  All services are free and confidential.  Staffed by all LGBTQIA+ volunteers, the dedicated toll-free phone number is 1-888-OUT-LGBT (1-888-688-5428), with a dedicated website at www.LGBTcomingOUT.org.  
 
The new hotline is a program of the LGBT National Help Center, a non-profit organization with a 26-year history of providing coming out services.  The LGBT National Coming Out Hotline provides a concentrated, focused and clear way of communicating that coming out, either to one’s self or to others, can be a deeply personal decision, but that it doesn’t mean having to go it alone.  While the hotline would never tell a person they MUST come out (as that is a highly personalized decision), the highly-trained, all LGBTQIA+ peer-support volunteers can provide a safe space on the telephone to discuss and consider a person’s physical and mental safety, as well as their options and how they might choose to move forward.  Certainly, not every conversation will end with a decision on coming out or not, and that’s to be expected. What matters is that this will provide a safe space for the LGBTQ community to go to when they are considering this decision, and know that they will be heard, affirmed and respected.
 
“When people in our community are considering one of the most important decisions of their lives, together we can provide critical support and care to those in the LGBTQIA+ community, who are terrified to simply be themselves,” said Executive Director Aaron Almanza.
 
For more information about the LGBT National Help Center, please visit www.LGBThotline.org.