The good thing about the fact that much of this visibility has come to me through Alpha Males is that people receive me in a friendly way, just like the series, and that's cool.
It can be tough being gay in a straight man's world. When it comes to figuring out our identities, we often have to negotiate our desires with the preconceived expectations around us. This was especially the case for folks who grew up when there was scant representation. Certain attractions may have bubbled, but they remained nameless. Still, that doesn't mean they went unheeded. Gay people have found themselves for centuries.
In sessions with clients, I've noticed Valentine's Day tends to amplify pressure around dating, desirability, and how we present ourselves. One of the more common ways gay men manage these pressures is through vocal code-switching-adjusting the pitch or quality of their voice to sound more traditionally masculine or "straight-passing." While often framed as self-protection, vocal masking can undermine authenticity and connection in ways we don't always recognize.