Chris Appleton Has Opened Up About Coming Out As Gay At 26 — After Welcoming Two Children With A Long-Term Girlfriend

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Chris Appleton has opened up about coming out as gay later in life — and how he had to battle with letting go of the “guilt” and “shame” surrounding his sexuality.

The 41-year-old celebrity hairstylist, who works with the likes of Kim Kardashian and Jennifer Lopez, admitted that he thought he had it “all figured out” when he and his long-term partner welcomed two children in his 20s.

Speaking on Bethenny Frankel’s podcast, Just B, Chris explained that while he and the mother of his children never married, they were together for nine years before he realized that he is gay

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“I think coming out later on in life — I was 26 — was incredibly difficult because I had two kids, I had a partner I’d been with for nine years, I thought I had it all figured out. Everybody else also thought I had it figured out,” he began. “So when you’re all of a sudden then changing the record, people are like: ‘Well, you must have always known,’ and I didn’t realize I did.”

“I was bullied quite a bit at school, and people used to say I was gay because I did hair,” Chris went on. “I never was too focused on sexuality, but people at school always mentioned it, and, as a kid, you just don’t ever want to be different — I already felt different because I was dyslexic.”

“I was, I guess, just determined to prove everyone wrong, but so much that I did myself a disjustice [sic],” he admitted. “It wasn’t until I experienced it at 26 that I was also going through it as well as everyone else. The difficult thing is, then you’re hurting people around you that you’ve committed to, and you feel that.”

“People feel like they know you, and you feel like you know them, and all of a sudden you’re telling a different story which you’re trying to figure out,” Chris added. “So it was really hard for a few years, it was really difficult.”

Bethenny then praised Chris for realizing that “something massive was missing” from his life and deciding to make the “courageous jump” by coming out.

“It sounds cheesy, but there’s honestly so much power in living authentically and being authentically yourself,” Chris acknowledged. “I think once I let go of all the guilt and shame of it all, my whole life changed. I moved to America, it was amazing how much grew and changed.”

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Chris also discussed his current relationship with his ex, who he is now good friends with. In fact, the star revealed that he recently got emotional while on the phone with her as he reflected on the person he used to be.

“I saw this video and I posted it a couple of weeks back, where I’m on a photo shoot — the first photo shoot I ever did — and she was there at the time,” he shared. “It actually made me tearful because I just looked so light and free and so happy to be there, and it made me really emotional.”

“I rang her because she was there, and she was like: ‘Oh my god, I remember that photo shoot, I remember going through 10,000 pictures, and it was just incredibly stressful,’” Chris recalled. “And she’s like: ‘Why are you emotional?’ I was like: ‘I don’t know, I just remember him, I remember that guy.’”

“Like, I was straight; I had two kids; I thought I had it all figured out,” he went on. “And she’s like: ‘You know, it was really hard because I think you had to mourn a part of someone that you had to let go.’ She was incredibly supportive of what I felt. I was told as a kid that gay was wrong, and gay men… You know, it’s not a good thing. It doesn’t fit into the box.”

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Chris went on to share his pride for their two children, 21-year-old Billy and 20-year-old Kitty, acknowledging that he is grateful to be able to show them a world outside of his hometown of Leicester, England.

“I mean, they’re amazing, and my one goal in life was always… I think the best thing you can do as a parent is to get them an experience outside of their hometown,” he shared. “In Leicester, where I grew up, people kind of grow, they get married, kids, and it’s kind of like a formula.”

“[Billy and Kitty] moved to LA two years ago, and they’ve been having a great time,” Chris gushed. “Kitty’s doing social media stuff now, and Billy’s at college, and they’re living their best lives. As a dad, I’m so proud that I can just give them opportunities and give them the opportunity to see the world.”

Summarizing the way that his life has improved since he accepted his true self, Chris concluded: “I didn’t see myself for 26 years. 26 years of my life, I didn’t see myself — I didn’t let myself see myself. And it wasn’t until someone said to me: ‘You’re allowed to see yourself, you’re allowed to be that person, you don’t have to feel guilty,’ my whole life literally changed. And I never want to be back in those chains.”

You can listen to Chris Appleton's full interview on the "Just B with Bethenny Frankel" podcast!