For those who have done so, how did you get to the point where became comfortable with the idea you couldn't fit other people's ideas of propriety?

I’ve had a kind of love-hate relationship with being myself for most of my life. It has caused me some serious mental health problems. But slowly, over the years, I have come to accept that I really can’t be who I think other people want me to be.

Not only can’t I please them, but it actually harms me more to try to fit in than it does to anger people who don’t like what I do. So gradually, I have come to the realization that it’s not just that I can’t be anyone other than who I am; I shouldn’t even want to be. The consequences of conforming are most likely going to be worse than the consequences of not conforming.

I’m still working on this, of course. But I’m wondering how you got to this understanding, or if you aren’t there, whether you think you can get there. If so, how? It is also interesting to know how you feel like you don’t conform, and how you came to accept that. If you can divulge that.