18% of LGBTQ+ adults have never come out — Here's why

LGBTQ+ people know who they are from a young age — but some of them have never let their loved ones know.

The majority of LGBTQ+ adults figured out their sexuality or gender identity when they were young, according to a new report from Gallup, in which 48 percent of respondents said they knew by the age of 14 and 72 percent came to the realization by the age of 18, with the median age being 14.

Most LGBTQ+ adults reported coming out to their friends and family by age 22 (57 percent), with the vast majority coming out before turning 30 (71 percent). However, a significant portion said they have never come out to anyone (18 percent), including a small portion of gay or lesbian Americans (5 percent), and nearly one in four bisexual adults (23 percent).

"Americans, like residents of other countries, have significantly changed in terms of the way they view LGBTQ+ people, including their perceptions of the morality of same-sex relations and views on LGBTQ+ rights in the U.S.," the report states. "As society has shifted in its views and treatment of this group, it has had little bearing on the timing when LGBTQ+ Americans became aware of their own personal identity, but it has had a great impact on when these individuals have chosen to share their identity with others."

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As they are more likely to come out, gay or lesbian people (24 percent) are twice as likely as bisexual people (12 percent) to say they have received more poor treatment or harassment in the past year compared to previous years. Overall, about one in four LGBTQ+ adults report receiving poor treatment or harassment “frequently” (5 percent) or “occasionally” (19 percent) because of their sexual orientation.

"Societal changes are no guarantee against discrimination, which one in four LGBTQ+ adults report having experienced in the past year and gay or lesbian people, in particular, are vulnerable to experiencing," the report concludes.