This is a topic we struggle with in our relationship. We have four sons, the oldest is 28 the youngest is 16, the two oldest are married and the only one living with us is the youngest. Quite by accident my daughter-in-law found out we were in the lifestyle, in our family there is very little that is off limits as far as discussions go and i didn't feel the need to lie to her. So my oldest son now knows, he has no interest in discussing it with us, that's fine, i don't have a problem with that. His wife, on the other hand, asks me questions all the time, again i don't have a problem with that, i give her as much information as i can. The three other boys know that one of the guest rooms upstairs is locked with a key lock, we have simply said that it's "mom's meditation room" hey, that's kinda true, certainly leave that room relaxed!
My sister was one of the first people i went to back when i was just getting interested, she is a lesbian and i knew that there were some kinky folks who hung out in some of the same bars. She introduced me to a friend who had a short D/s relationship, who then directed me to FetLife, and the rest is history! Other than that our families don't know, and i really don't feel like they need to, we have very little interaction with them anyway.
Work, now that is a different matter. i'm a nurse by trade and the state that i live in there is a morality clause associated with my license and the majority of the employers have the same clauses. Coming out at work would probably never be an option for me. Sir is in a similar situation, He is a Consultant, a contracted worker, His livelihood could be very negatively impacted if the wrong people knew about our choices.
We have a TON of lifestyle friends, but within the community we are very careful about giving out personal information. Most of the people know our real first names (as opposed to our scene/screen names) but most of them don't know our last name or address. We, of course have close friends within the community who have been to our home and us to there's, but that information is given carefully, and it is quite an honor when we are gifted with it, it's a sacred trust that we would never share the information to harm them. Recently there was a submissive who came into the community, acquired that information and outed a Dom to his employer, his wife and their 13 year old daughter. We later found out that she was not who she said she was and that there were warrants for her arrest in another state. Scary stuff for everyone involved.
So, who have your shared your lifestyle choices with? Were there any repercussions? i'd love to hear your stories! Just put them in the comments below, the anon feature is on if you'd rather not share your information!
