20 Struggles Gays from Small Towns Know All Too Well

Being young and being gay is hard enough, but combine that with living in a small, conservative town, and you have a tumultuous situation that’s far from ideal. From coming out to finding love, the struggle is REAL.

Here are 20 things only gay boys from a small town will understand.

1. The nearest Grindr profile is 89 miles away.

2. And that profile is probably a creepy man over the age 60.

3. Long-distance relationships are your only relationships.

4. Everyone knows you—and everyone knows you’re gay.

5. You’re legit the only gay person this town has ever seen.

6. AND if by some miracle from God there is more than one gay person at your school, you’ve all already hooked up and it’s awkward.

7. The smaller your town, the more conservative it is, which makes coming out of the closest an excruciating process.

8. You definitely had that core group of girlfriends you could confide in.

9. Bullying is a very real, very scary thing.

10. Loneliness and isolation are two things you’re now an expert on.

11. The internet is your best friend and you've built a ton of online relationships.

12. And you long to meet your internet friends/lovers in real life.

13. You’ve definitely hooked up in a car and/or public place because hosting someone in your house/town is IMPOSSIBLE.

14. Nightlife is non-existent and gay clubs are a fantasy only seen on TV.

15. Homophobia isn’t your town’s only problem: racism and sexism also run rampant.

16. Your days are consumed by figuring out how the hell you’re gonna get out of this place.

17. And you stress out about how complacent your friends are for potentially living there their entire lives.

18. Driving around is your biggest social activity.

19. That, or doing something in a field and/or woods.

20. You do well in high school in the hopes that you can go to college far away and get the hell outta there...

...and you eventually do! And you don't think twice about it or even bother looking back!