What's the best way to cope with family members who will not accept your sexual orientation?

Try to not start conflict, rather take a careful approach and try to engage them in conversation about why they think they way they think. As hard as it may be, try to ignore their negative words. If it's becoming abusive and you feel threatened, I think you should take contact with a trusting adult that you feel can help.

Tell them that it's not something that will change who you are. You are the same person you were and always will be. Good luck!

It's really tough, but one way I've learned to cope with it is to find supportive friends, and sometimes even an accepting community online where you can casually and openly be yourself while giving your family a bit more time to digest it. Occasionally they don't get over it, but often they do

Well, it’s best to I guess not really talk about it in front of them and to read enough of stuff so that you can oppose their views and state the correct things and acts if they put up any points like religion and history to justify their non acceptance to our sexual orientation. Also, conservative people are hard to change but in the end they ARE people. So yeah, if you really want them to accept you, you can start attempting to change their point of views. But In the majority of times, if it isnt safe for you to discuss about your sexuality in front of anyone, then you don’t have to do it.

This can be a difficult issue. To some having family support is very important which is very understandable. Every person an family situation is different. I feel education to the family is always a good option. another good option with coping with this is deciding what family truly means to you, weighing the pros and cons of keep this kind of support in your life and committing to make changes to better yourself and your mental health. i am a big believer in most people may not actually be non accepting but just uneducated. Going through this process it is important to know that you have an alternate support system behind you that is free of judgement

personally, i try to avoid telling them until I am 100% sure that i will be secure and safe even if i tell them about my sexuality. i will wait until they cannot affect my life in a huge way before telling them about me. either that or i tell them and i let them know that it's okay if they do not like who i am, but they have to respect me otherwise they will no longer have a spot in my life. i wouldn't be overly gentle with them, but i wouldn't be overly brash either. i know they were just hit with a bombshell so i would have some patience to the best of my ability.