[nandm]

IMHO the gender is only an issue when there is the chance of a romantic relationship developing. I think that sometimes people might be more prone to fall for their sponsor like some fall for their psychiatrist. It could truly complicate the sponsor/sponsee relationship. Unfortunately in early sobriety, many people are more susceptible to falling into relationships as the old habit of finding someone to fix us is easy to fall back into. Unfortunately that takes the attention away from where it should be which is sobriety. I have always had women sponsors and I am a gay woman. But I also have made a point not to cross any relationship lines in the process. I also would be just as comfortable with the right man as a sponsor. But in early sobriety I made a point to work on keeping my sobriety first as I knew that unless I was sober there was no hope for any lasting relationship with anyone including myself. Just my couple of cents worth