 |
| Shane Dawson Source: Wikimedia.org |
A few months ago, popular YouTuber Shane Dawson (above) shared a very difficult and emotional video of himself coming out as bisexual.
Having been a big fan of Shane's videos for years, I realized this was the most honest, raw and bravest we have ever seen Shane. This was a big step, and took serious guts. My eyes teared up while watching and I have even more respect for Shane for doing this and letting the world see him in such a vulnerable way.
In the video, he confirmed that his nearly 4 year relationship with fellow YouTuber Lisa Schwartz was ended as a result of him wanting to figure out who he is. He also acknowledges that he wants to be open to love, in any way, and needs to work on accepting and not being so hard on himself, stating "I don't want to hate myself anymore, and I don't want to be sad all the time...I want to just be happy...and I want to love who I love, whether that's a guy or a girl" (see full video below).
 |
| Lisa Schwartz and Shane Dawson Source: Flickr.com |
A few days later, Lisa posted a video on her own channel addressing what had happened. She says that although she is hurting, she is so happy for Shane to finally have a chance at happiness and at self-love, something which she has always known he struggled with and tried to give him, but it was just something that had to come from him.
Lisa goes on to talk about how this is also an opportunity for her to find happiness and someone who can love her fully, as she lived a lot of her life for Shane, but now "it's time for me to take care of me...you have to live for yourself and take care of yourself...that doesn't make you selfish [or] a bad person, that makes you human and that produces self-love", which she tearfully says is something she is happy both herself and Shane now have a chance at finding.
In response to people saying she's an angel and a hero for being so good and understanding to Shane during this difficult time, she says, through tears; "I'm not a hero...I'm just a girl who loved a boy who didn't love himself...so I had to let him go and I would do it again in a heartbeat...because I love you Shane and I just want the best life for you."
If I thought Shane's video was emotional... well, this video truly broke me. Tears streamed down my face, and I felt as though I had gone through a heart break myself. I'm not exaggerating when I say it took me a few days to get over it.
You can watch both videos below:
I have so much admiration for both Shane and Lisa for posting these videos and for what they said in them.
I've long been a fan of both - not just as YouTubers, but as I always considered them such a cute, idealistic couple (hashtag #RelationshipGoals!), so yes that is part of the reason why this upset me so much, but not the only reason.
I know it's so sad and ridiculous to have such an emotional attachment to people who are essentially strangers to me, but honestly, watching this was truly heartbreaking. As a fan, yes, but also as it hit home something I feel very strongly about and really believe in, which they both addressed in their videos... you need to be happy with yourself before you can be happy with someone else.
