Coming Out is something that you start when you look in the mirror and can say 'I'm gay' and finishes when you die, everyday people weigh up who they tell about their sexuality and who they don't, sometimes they get good reactions, sometimes bad.

There isn't a one size fits all approach to coming out and everyone finds their own way to do it in different situations, everyone's coming out story is different. Terrence Higgins Trust set up a great site called YGM - www.ygm.org.uk  it's aimed at gay and bisexual young men but a lot of what it says is good advice and a great place for lesbians to start to.

Here are some thoughts from UCL's LGB Society website which might be useful:

• Look for sympathetic people to come out to first.
• Follow your own timetable - it's your life and your sexuality.
• Don't feel you have to tell people until you are ready.
• Don't assume people are homophobic just because they make anti-gay jokes. Often people haven't really thought the thing through, and don't do so until someone close to them comes out. Sadly the opposite can also be true. Just because people claim to be liberal or politically correct doesn't mean that they cannot be quite fixed and judgemental in their view of gays and lesbians.
• Don't be too put off by an initial bad reaction. Many people react badly when they are faced with something that has shocked them.
• Choose your medium. If you are worried that someone will be very hostile, writing might give them time to assimilate the news better. Never feel guilty! Easier said than done, but once we start blaming ourselves for other's bad reactions to us we are on the road to depression.
• None of us has control over how we are, so we don't need to apologise for it.

Youth groups are also a really good place to find people to talk to about coming out and also about how you feel coming to terms with being gay or bisexual, however not everyone comes out when they're young.

Organisations like London Friend and the LGBT Switchboards have people who can talk to you about coming out and how you feel about it before you do it, no-one can give you the answer but sometimes it's good to talk..