r/Actuallylesbian Mar 02 '21

Meta [Please read] Rules & FAQ

52 Upvotes

Since not everyone knows how to access reddit sidebars please see below our rules and FAQ. While this thread will be locked our modmail is always open if you have questions. If you see any rule breaking activity please make sure to hit the report button instead of engaging.


Please know unless you come here specifically to spam or troll you will be issued warnings before being banned. We will not moderate content posted outside our community. And all bans can be appealed via modmail.

Rules:

1) Be respectful and no personal attacks

Please be kind, be sincere, and respect your fellow users. No name calling or personal attacks are allowed. Repeated rule violations may result in a ban.

2) Invalidation, policing gender or sexuality

You cannot invalidate someone’s experiences nor force your experience on someone else. We are not here to police each other’s gender or sexuality. We are built around women loving women. If you want to debate exactly what that means there are other communities to do that in.

For examples on reasons rule 2 may be enforced please read this mod comment.

3) Lesbian and casual discussion focused

This is a sub that is first and foremost meant to be lesbian focused. However, we also allow text discussion posts that encourage engagement with the community. Go ahead and ask how our cats are doing, we'll appreciate it. Please keep memes, selfies and photos to their respective megathreads.

For details on how we define a lesbian please read this mod comment.

4) Polarizing Content

This is where exercising good judgment enters the picture. Think about what you are about to say and if it will bring this community closer together or divide us further apart. Please cite this rule to get mod attention if you feel a user is participating in bad faith and we will work as needed to correct the situation.

5) Other communities: advertising or venting

Posts focused on venting about other subreddits or bans from other subreddits will be removed as they may inadvertently encourage brigading. We also do not allow posts that advertise other communities.

6) No porn, OnlyFans, hookups, r4r, or similar content

7) No questioning / "Am I a Lesbian?" content


FAQ:

-How is this sub different from the other subs intended for lesbians?

When AyL was founded there was a lot of drama and negativity between r/actuallesbians and r/truelesbians (a sub which has since been banned) and some users, such as our sub founder and the current mod team, wanted a chill neutral sub to escape that. Somewhere we could have discussions that weren't drowned out by selfies, memes or full of polarizing topics that lead to fighting.
Brief timeline/description of lesbian subreddits

-Can I participate if I'm a bisexual woman / transgender / non-binary / other?

Yes. However, this is a lesbian subreddit. Posts overly related to bisexual, trans, or non-binary topics will be removed and users asked to instead post to subreddits that specialize in those topics.

Overall, anyone who can contribute to exclusively lesbian topics is invited to do so (within reason). As an example: in the past we have allowed a straight parent make a one-off post asking for book ideas for their lesbian daughter. However, please be mindful this is primarily meant to be a subreddit for lesbians.

-Can I post selfies, memes or couple photos?

Our goal is to promote interaction and discussion through thoughtful and engaging content. Please limit selfies and couple photos to either our Memes & Media Monday Megathread or Women's Wednesday Megathread. If you would like to make your own selfie post please take it to /r/LesbianActually or /r/DykesGoneMild.

-Can I post a survey or poll?

No, as a discussion focused community we do not allow surveys or polls. However, we do encourage text posts with a question that generates meaningful engagement with the community.

-Why does your banner have those flags?

We chose to include the 3 most common lesbian flags in the banner because there is no consensus in the community on "THE" design. Everyone seems to have their favorite or a complaint about specific flags.

The purple flag is centered on the desktop version purely because it fits there the best aesthetically since it's the only one without stripes. And then from that flag the other two are positioned based on the age of their creation (purple is oldest, followed by pink, and then the fairly new sunset flag).


Thank you,

-Your AyL mods


Lesbian Subreddits
Please read their rules & description before participating
Brief timeline/description of the general lesbian subreddits

General
r/actuallesbians
r/LesbianActually
r/ActuallyLesbian
r/lesbiangang

Age
r/ActualLesbiansOver25
r/latebloomerlesbians
r/olderlesbians

Butch
r/butchlesbians
r/ActuallyButch

Fashion/Selfies
r/lesbianfashionadvice
r/dykesgonemild

Hobby
r/lesbiangamers
r/LesbiENTS

Other
r/AskLesbians
r/lesbianmemes
r/SapphoAndHerFriend


Record of Edits
Edit 5/2/21 - formatting
Edit 5/22/22 - rule 5 added
Edit 5/24/22 - surveys & polls FAQ
Edit 8/1/22 - added links to mod comments in rules 2 and 3
Edit 2/2/24 - added list of lesbian subreddits
Edit 2/6/24 - reworded FAQ regarding participation from users who are bi/trans/NB/other
Edit 2/13/24 - updated rule 1
Edit 2/14/24 - added rules 6 & 7 (which were previously enforced via "discussion focused" rule)
Edit 12/17/24 - added link to brief timeline/description of lesbian subreddits
Edit 9/19/25 - retired Discord


r/Actuallylesbian 1d ago

Megathread Women's Wednesday: Selfies and Singles

1 Upvotes

This is a thread for singles to chat and post selfies. Please keep photos safe for work.

Reminder: Imgur is a great hosting site for sharing images via links in threads. Please be mindful of your username if it is different than your reddit handle, and to choose whether you would like your post public or hidden.


r/Actuallylesbian 19h ago

Relationships/Family I’m Blowing It…Help!

10 Upvotes

My partner, B, and I have been together for nearly 12 years. She truly is everything I could ever ask for. She takes care of me, her mom, and both of my boys (4 and 9 when we met). She stepped in from day one and has been an amazing parent to both of them.

She has supported me and loved me when I have truly been unlovable. I had a very traumatic childhood, and my mental health was very, very bad. I really can’t explain why, but I was extremely resistant to getting any kind of help for the majority of our relationship.

Over the last year, I’ve really been working on my mental health. I have a psychiatrist who diagnosed me with bipolar, autism, and ADHD, and I started doing Spravato (ketamine) treatments for treatment-resistant depression. I’m not where I want to be yet, but I’m getting there one day at a time.

My whole life, I’ve never been good at giving gifts. I overthink it and get overwhelmed and can never make a decision. The closer the holiday/birthday gets, I get more and more anxious, which makes it even harder to make a decision. In the end, I usually end up freezing up and either not getting a gift or grabbing something last-minute that is just something that I think they’ll like.

That said, her birthday was the beginning of this month. I had been in-and-out of the hospital for 2 weeks before her birthday, so I was a little concentrated on my health, but I ended up not getting her anything for her birthday.

I feel terrible, and I don’t know how to make it up to her. She deserves so much better, but I feel like I always mess it up in the end.

All of that in mind, does anyone have any ideas for things that I can do to make it up to her? I thought about doing a make-up birthday on her half-birthday in January, but I have no idea what to even begin to plan for it.

I just want to make my partner feel as special and amazing as I think she is. She means the world to me, and I want to be the partner she deserves.

TL/DR - I suck at gifts - how do I make my partner feel special?


r/Actuallylesbian 2d ago

Discussion Periods not synced with partner

0 Upvotes

Hello! My parter and I have been together for over 3 years. Right now we are struggling with our period cycles. Right now when one of us is ovulating the other is on their period. It’s been very annoying for us when it comes to sex.
Has anyone tried a short term birth control to try and sync periods with their parter or anything else?


r/Actuallylesbian 3d ago

Megathread Monday Making Friends

2 Upvotes

This is a thread to introduce yourself and make new friends!

Please practice internet safety by being cautious of accounts with low karma and avoid sharing information that is overly private. Never send money or nude photographs to unverified people. Selfies can be faked so video chat is the best way to verify someone is genuine. When in doubt, trust your gut.


r/Actuallylesbian 5d ago

Megathread Weekend Free Talk

1 Upvotes

This is a thread that is less moderated than the rest of the subreddit. Our rules of treating one another with kindness, respect and general codes of conduct still apply. But go ahead and share any content that may not fit in elsewhere, such as celebrity crushes, how your week has been, that cute photo of your cat, or a picture of yourself if you slept through last Wednesday’s megathread - anything goes (:

Reminder: www.Imgur.com is a great hosting site for sharing images via links in threads. Please be mindful of your username if it is different than your reddit handle, and to choose whether you would like your post public or hidden.


r/Actuallylesbian 6d ago

Megathread Fun Friday: What have you been doing to keep yourself entertained?

1 Upvotes

This is also a normal free talk megathread, so feel free to comment selfies and cat pictures and things like that. Happy Friday!

This is a thread that is less moderated than the rest of the subreddit. Our rules of treating one another with kindness and respect, not debating, and general codes of conduct still apply, but go ahead and share any and all content that may not fit in elsewhere, such as celebrity crushes, how your week has been, that cute photo of your cat, or a picture of yourself if you slept through last Wednesday’s megathread - anything goes (:

Reminder: www.Imgur.com is a great hosting site for sharing images via links in threads. Please be mindful of your username if it is different than your reddit handle, and to choose whether you would like your post public or hidden.


r/Actuallylesbian 12d ago

Megathread Weekend Free Talk

1 Upvotes

This is a thread that is less moderated than the rest of the subreddit. Our rules of treating one another with kindness, respect and general codes of conduct still apply. But go ahead and share any content that may not fit in elsewhere, such as celebrity crushes, how your week has been, that cute photo of your cat, or a picture of yourself if you slept through last Wednesday’s megathread - anything goes (:

Reminder: www.Imgur.com is a great hosting site for sharing images via links in threads. Please be mindful of your username if it is different than your reddit handle, and to choose whether you would like your post public or hidden.


r/Actuallylesbian 14d ago

Advice Any success dating someone who isn't your usual type?

31 Upvotes

Hey ladies! After a solid year of reflection after a big break up I got back out in the world and on the apps and started dating. Lots of beautiful women but I very quickly felt bored and uninspired by most.

I recently went on a few dates with a woman who is pretty, but not my usual type looks and personality wise. After two dates I already feel really comfortable around her, she is sooooo funny and I'm always laughing and shes easy to talk to and get deep without trauma dumping. She seems so sweet but still too early to tell. We had our first kiss and to my surprise I really really enjoyed it. it felt really natural.

I'm pleasantly surprised but wanted to hear other people's experiences with dating outside their type:)


r/Actuallylesbian 13d ago

Megathread Friday Advice Thread

1 Upvotes

Need advice from your fellow lesbians?

Ask away!


r/Actuallylesbian 15d ago

Megathread Women's Wednesday: Selfies and Singles

0 Upvotes

This is a thread for singles to chat and post selfies. Please keep photos safe for work.

Reminder: Imgur is a great hosting site for sharing images via links in threads. Please be mindful of your username if it is different than your reddit handle, and to choose whether you would like your post public or hidden.


r/Actuallylesbian 17d ago

Megathread Monday Making Friends

3 Upvotes

This is a thread to introduce yourself and make new friends!

Please practice internet safety by being cautious of accounts with low karma and avoid sharing information that is overly private. Never send money or nude photographs to unverified people. Selfies can be faked so video chat is the best way to verify someone is genuine. When in doubt, trust your gut.


r/Actuallylesbian 19d ago

Megathread Weekend Free Talk

2 Upvotes

This is a thread that is less moderated than the rest of the subreddit. Our rules of treating one another with kindness, respect and general codes of conduct still apply. But go ahead and share any content that may not fit in elsewhere, such as celebrity crushes, how your week has been, that cute photo of your cat, or a picture of yourself if you slept through last Wednesday’s megathread - anything goes (:

Reminder: www.Imgur.com is a great hosting site for sharing images via links in threads. Please be mindful of your username if it is different than your reddit handle, and to choose whether you would like your post public or hidden.


r/Actuallylesbian 20d ago

Support 30th birthday.

16 Upvotes

Today, I’ve turned 30 years old.

Before today… I knew I wanted to, & was going to spend my birth date reflecting on my life thus far in its entirety.

At 30, a major lesson I’ve been learning & dissecting is how to deal with grief & how it comes.

How I initially intended to spend my 30th, did not come to fruition unfortunately.

I experienced a severe case of grief back in March of this year & at this point in the year, i am still dealing with the effects of it.

Despite the things I did do leading up to today… I wish I could’ve experienced parts of turning 30 with people I care about where I currently live.

Outside of that, I’m nervous for what my 30s will present to me in terms of a work life, & my personal life. I want to flirt with the curiosities of my 30s. The what-ifs in their full capacity.

I want to discover more of who I am as a creative woman, & a lesbian who has fully embraced myself as one after trying to figure it out for 15 years, despite knowing at 14.

I want to fall in love with life. That’s not really something I’ve done before or at least have felt like I came close to that feeling before.

I want to know myself inside & out, without someone shaping my experiences to where I feel as if I don’t know myself. I know myself, better than anyone else.

My intentions for turning 30, was for me to feel a sense of belonging. “Belonging” looked like safety, laughter, & closeness with people I care about. Friends I spent a significant amount of time with in my free time.

Especially after moving states away from what I’m used to, crafting friendships in my adulthood, & really just finding my footing with this adulting thing.

My late 20s have been heavily centered around exploring how I identify as a demisexual lesbian, building what feels like community to me away from home, emotional vulnerability, rediscovering my creative identity through photography, cinematography, & graphic design, & trying to develop a life that I deserve for myself by the time I’m in my 40s & 50s that maybe I can even fit someone into later down the road, as well as other hidden parts of who I am as a person.

Trauma played a huge part in my 20s as well.

My grief took up space for a lot of those things, but I think the bigger picture is how I now choose to occupy those spaces at 30 for myself.

My 30s belong to the art I’ll make, how I identify as a lesbian, being gentle with myself, resting, healing, platonic relationships & the intimacy that comes with it, & a career change among a variety of other things.

I want to do everything that I want to do that brings me happiness without finding myself putting my emotional & mental state in the hands of someone who is making a tangible decision to feed my traumas back to me while knowing the negative impact those events had on me.

Turning 30 today doesn’t feel less special because I didn’t spend it with people I care about, but I think the special part is spending it with honesty.

Grief, growth, solitude, reciprocity, creativity, longing, yearning, all of those concepts I hope to genuinely discover through future interactions with people I haven’t met yet.

Moving forward… I just want to create & do well for myself in life, without feeling as if I’m solely surviving. I’m going to now allow myself the freedom to freely explore how I identify. I do not want to shrink myself to make someone else feel seen. I want to give myself a life of more peace, despite not having peace while dealing with my grief.

Here’s to good experiences in my 30s.


r/Actuallylesbian 20d ago

Megathread Fun Friday: What have you been doing to keep yourself entertained?

1 Upvotes

This is also a normal free talk megathread, so feel free to comment selfies and cat pictures and things like that. Happy Friday!

This is a thread that is less moderated than the rest of the subreddit. Our rules of treating one another with kindness and respect, not debating, and general codes of conduct still apply, but go ahead and share any and all content that may not fit in elsewhere, such as celebrity crushes, how your week has been, that cute photo of your cat, or a picture of yourself if you slept through last Wednesday’s megathread - anything goes (:

Reminder: www.Imgur.com is a great hosting site for sharing images via links in threads. Please be mindful of your username if it is different than your reddit handle, and to choose whether you would like your post public or hidden.


r/Actuallylesbian 24d ago

Advice Girlfriend hates when I drink

13 Upvotes

Not sure if this is the right subreddit for this question, but i'm posting anyways because i'm gay!

Hey y'all, I am 18 (F) and like to drink and eat weed gummies sometimes. And by sometimes I mean i've eaten maybe 3 in the past month and a half. I've been drunk maybe 3 times in the past couple years and I drink maybe two to three times per month. My girlfriend hates it. She doesn't want me to tell her that i'm drinking, she doesn't WANT me drinking, and she tells me that she's scared i'm going to do something dangerous, say something I shouldn't, or something is going to go wrong. She gets pretty mad at me and I don't really know what to do.

It's similar with the gummies i've taken. She doesn't like when I eat them. Also, just about every time i've been under the influence it has been with parents or some other guardian figure with me. I have never drank unsafely or recklessly. Not sure what to do? I've tried talking to her about how I do it just to make fun times more fun but she claims she's scared i'm going to start relying on it for my mental.

Help?


r/Actuallylesbian 26d ago

Megathread Weekend Free Talk

2 Upvotes

This is a thread that is less moderated than the rest of the subreddit. Our rules of treating one another with kindness, respect and general codes of conduct still apply. But go ahead and share any content that may not fit in elsewhere, such as celebrity crushes, how your week has been, that cute photo of your cat, or a picture of yourself if you slept through last Wednesday’s megathread - anything goes (:

Reminder: www.Imgur.com is a great hosting site for sharing images via links in threads. Please be mindful of your username if it is different than your reddit handle, and to choose whether you would like your post public or hidden.


r/Actuallylesbian 27d ago

Megathread Friday Advice Thread

2 Upvotes

Need advice from your fellow lesbians?

Ask away!


r/Actuallylesbian 29d ago

Megathread Women's Wednesday: Selfies and Singles

2 Upvotes

This is a thread for singles to chat and post selfies. Please keep photos safe for work.

Reminder: Imgur is a great hosting site for sharing images via links in threads. Please be mindful of your username if it is different than your reddit handle, and to choose whether you would like your post public or hidden.


r/Actuallylesbian Jun 22 '26

Discussion Gimme things that ARE Femme Lesbians

47 Upvotes

There was a fun Twitter thread I LOVED but can’t find anymore that was like “things I think are butch lesbians” and it was stuff like drum sets, beavers, hammers, grilled cheese sandwiches, st. bernards etc and I want a femme version LOLL

so far I have the moon, birdbaths and gummy multivitamins if you have more ideas I really want them. You don’t have to be able to explain them it doesn’t need a direct tie to the culture it’s just a guttural feeling. Intuition.

(ALSO IF YOU KNOW WHAT THREAD IM TALKING ABT HAVE THE LINK CAN YOU SEND IT??)


r/Actuallylesbian Jun 22 '26

Megathread Monday Making Friends

0 Upvotes

This is a thread to introduce yourself and make new friends!

Please practice internet safety by being cautious of accounts with low karma and avoid sharing information that is overly private. Never send money or nude photographs to unverified people. Selfies can be faked so video chat is the best way to verify someone is genuine. When in doubt, trust your gut.


r/Actuallylesbian Jun 20 '26

Megathread Weekend Free Talk

1 Upvotes

This is a thread that is less moderated than the rest of the subreddit. Our rules of treating one another with kindness, respect and general codes of conduct still apply. But go ahead and share any content that may not fit in elsewhere, such as celebrity crushes, how your week has been, that cute photo of your cat, or a picture of yourself if you slept through last Wednesday’s megathread - anything goes (:

Reminder: www.Imgur.com is a great hosting site for sharing images via links in threads. Please be mindful of your username if it is different than your reddit handle, and to choose whether you would like your post public or hidden.


r/Actuallylesbian Jun 19 '26

Megathread Fun Friday: What have you been doing to keep yourself entertained?

1 Upvotes

This is also a normal free talk megathread, so feel free to comment selfies and cat pictures and things like that. Happy Friday!

This is a thread that is less moderated than the rest of the subreddit. Our rules of treating one another with kindness and respect, not debating, and general codes of conduct still apply, but go ahead and share any and all content that may not fit in elsewhere, such as celebrity crushes, how your week has been, that cute photo of your cat, or a picture of yourself if you slept through last Wednesday’s megathread - anything goes (:

Reminder: www.Imgur.com is a great hosting site for sharing images via links in threads. Please be mindful of your username if it is different than your reddit handle, and to choose whether you would like your post public or hidden.


r/Actuallylesbian Jun 16 '26

Advice 28f seeking advice

10 Upvotes

Hello everyone! I just need some advice, because I've been having a hard time in my social life and making friends, etc. I've been working on myself, both mentally and physically at the gym to work towards a body that I'll feel more confident in, making myself go to events solo (despite still being scared to try and start conversations), etc. I am also intending on starting therapy soon as well.

Despite all of this, I still feel hopeless for the future, afraid that women are going to want someone more interesting/more attractive (I try to be interesting but I still feel like many people lead much more eventful lives lol). So I'm trying to be content by myself in the meantime. But where is the novelty there when you've been doing everything by yourself: going to the movies, going out to eat, going on solo trips. Pride month especially has been difficult, as I don't want to go to any pride events by myself knowing I'll be seeing everyone with their friends and partners, so I've just been focusing on work, gym, etc. I've been to a pride event by myself and it just felt awkward to be honest 💀

Are there any suggestions as to how I can genuinely be content with being single for the time being and not feel sad at seeing couples? Like I hope I can find my one and only one day but I know i have to "love myself" first, and there's no telling how long it'll be before I find someone 😅 and I'm 28, so I feel like time is tickin'. Any advice is appreciated.


r/Actuallylesbian Jun 14 '26

Discussion What do you look for in a friend (after 35?)

11 Upvotes

Instead of asking "how do you make friends?" - I'd like to know what makes you consider someone for a friend, especially those of use over 30, 35? How do you go about hanging out? What fo you enjoy about them? Why do you keep them close?

I am trying to make more sapphic friends because I realized, after those I had started families, I was left with some guy friends I gamed with and they start to get bolder despite knowing I'm a lesbian.