This is Me Paige Hoeft

Sexuality 2

During the early years of my life, I identified as heterosexual; however, near the end of elementary school, I began to question that. For me, it was more of just wondering why I liked girls because, regardless of if I’d been exposed to homosexuality yet or not, I knew that liking boys and girls wasn’t “normal” among my friends. By the end of middle school, I knew I was bisexual. In May of 2021, I came out quietly to a few close friends and family. This summer, I told more friends, and by National Coming Out Day this year, I was completely out as bisexual. Even though I knew about my sexuality at the end of middle school, I didn’t end up coming out for about four years due to the denial I felt because of the religious and political views I was raised to have, as well as the views I knew some of my family and friends had.

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My decision to come out when I did was influenced by one of my past teacher’s confidence in their sexuality, as well as a feeling of greater acceptance of the lgbtq+ community from a few of my friends. I also just couldn’t stand knowing for so long and letting what I thought others would think keep me from being true to myself. I like to think that my coming out has helped those close to me (that used to not be accepting of the lgbtq+ community) become more accepting of my community and diversity as a whole :) As a bisexual, I am attracted to both males and females. While some people that identify as bisexual are additionally attracted to those that identify as non-binary, I have yet to find myself in that position.

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Celebrity Crushes lol

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Gender Identity 6

I identify as a cisfemale, meaning that I identify as the gender I was assigned at birth. Growing up as the eldest child, I found myself playing with both traditional girls toys and boys toys. I went shopping with my mom, aunt and grandma, & I also went fishing with my dad and helped him in his shop. While being exposed to different gender identities is relatively new to me, it has not changed the way in which I identify.

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Nuclear Family 8

Siblings I have two younger siblings; a sister, Amber & a brother, Dylan. As the oldest, I didn’t grow up with my siblings acting as large role models in my life; however, they both teach me a lot in the way they live her lives. I would say that as we’ve grown up, spending time together is definitely more difficult because of our busy schedules, but it’s usually pleasant when we do.

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Extended Family 10

Maternal Grandparents

Paternal Grandparents

My grandparents on my mother’s side of the family, are definitely the most influential people in my family’s relationship. They raised their four children in a close-knit household and have carried that into my generation of the family.

My grandparents on my father’s side are less influential in my life because they are simply in my life less. While my grandpa is closer with my brother because they share a lot of the same interests and spend time together, he still makes a great effort to connect with my sister and I often. My grandma is not really in my life anymore; Christmas is the only day of the year I see her.

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My mother has two brother’s, one of which being Chad Meyers whose wife is Jenny. I don’t see them very often because they live out of town; thus, they’re not too influential in my life. But when we do get the chance to get together as a family for holidays, I enjoy their presence.

This is my mother’s next oldest brother, Jason, his wife, my father’s sister, Dana & their two daughters, Olivia & Alyssa Meyers. Their entire family has been extremely involved in my life since I was born. Being that my cousins and I are related on both sides of our family, we see each other often and have always been close.

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My mother also has a sister, Brittany, who’s family consists of her husband, Jeremy Kuderer & their two children, Addison & Owen. Brittany is only ten years older than me, so she’s acted as more of a sister to me than an aunt. Now that she has a family of her own, she remains a large part of my family; our families are incredibly close.

My father also has a half-sister, Amy, who;’s family consists of her husband, Irvin, & their daughter, Erin Fuller. They live out of town, so we don’t often see them. And being that we’re less close with my dad’s side of the family, we don’t see them too often at family gatherings either. I’ve only seen my uncle Irvin a handful of times.

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Socio-emotional Maintenance 14

My family used to be a lot closer when I was young; however, we all still spend enough time together to know one another’s current lives. I specifically started to drift from my family as I started to be different than them. I started involving myself in sports and clubs that my parents didn’t understand, I began dressing in a different way, I started finding my own beliefs that didn’t align with my family’s. Two big turning points in my emotional separation from my family are when I was diagnosed with a couple mental illnesses and when I came out as bisexual; in both instances, I lacked their support. Overall, my mother has less of a temper than my father, but they both tend to parent me by giving material things instead of emotional support. They raised me in a tougher way than my younger siblings, and, thankfully, I do not believe my siblings feel this disconnect from my parents.

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Friends 16

My friends and I have all always been pretty close. Almost all of us have grown up in the same school, and we all live relatively close to one another. Some of our parents are also friends with each other. My friends have always been very influential to my life. Some of the friends that I’ve made as I’ve grown up are more influential because we really had to vibe in order to get close rather than just growing up in the same grade for our whole lives.

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Relationships 18

I have not yet been in a relationship. I appreciate how my relationship status has allowed me to learn more about myself at my own pace and give more time to school, work & friends. Here are some characteristics of what I think a healthy and happy relationship looks like for me: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

In love with each other Are honest and truthful A good friend with whom I can talk Makes me feel important Is fun to be with Is emotionally mature Encourages me to be my own person Shares interests in home, children, romantic love & faith Communicates well with me Shares interests in making money and having fun

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