The Counselor’s Role in Helping Students With Sexual Identity Issues: A Case Study of a Mother and Daughter

This article describes a qualitative study of the coming out process of an adolescent lesbian. The study traces the phases of the coming out process and describes the parallel process of her mother. The study is a phenomenological case study that shows findings consistent with Cass' model of sexual identity formation and identifies the following themes for the individual: (a) feelings of distress, (b) questions about being different and the effects of being different, (c) awareness, (d) certainty and relief, (e) feelings of pride, (f) feeling comfortable with self, and (g) helpful counselor behaviors.