How Do I Know If I'm Gay?
Ever wonder: How do I know if I'm gay? It can be very complicated to determine your sexual orientation especially in this society we live in where everyone is expected to be straight. It is however crucial for you to take the time to discover whether you're asexual, bisexual, heterosexual or homosexual. You are the only person who can determine what your orientation really is, not society!
It is very important to note that having a sex dream about a person of the same gender as you does not necessarily mean you are gay and having a sex dream about someone of the opposite gender does not necessarily mean you are straight. Sex dreams, sexual fantasies, or even feelings of intense attraction are not always a surefire tell-tale sign of our sexual orientation.
To determine your sexual orientation you need to keep in mind that there are two forms of attraction. The first is romantic attraction. If you are romantically attracted to an individual, you feel a desire to have a romantic relationship with them. The second is sexual attraction. If you are sexually attracted to a person, you want to have sex with them.
It is possible to be romantically and sexually attracted to the same groups of people and at other times not. For example: you can be romantically attracted to women but sexually attracted to men, women, and nonbinary individuals. This will mean that you are mixed or cross orientated. Your orientation will depend solely on the combination of your sexual and romantic feelings.
You should never suppress your feelings even if it is hard for you to understand them. To the contrary, you should explore your feelings as this will help figure out your orientation a lot quicker and easier. Remember that there are still a lot of homophobic individuals who will try to stigmatize your orientation. Individuals who do not fall in the straight sexual orientation category are often made to feel like they should suppress their feelings. This is utter nonsense! Your orientation and feelings are valid!
It is important to remember that there is no perfect way to determine what your orientation is. Sexually orientation can be incorrectly identified or even change over time. This is due to the fact that sexuality and orientation are fluid. It is highly recommended that you conduct as much research as possible on the matter. Read forums, join LGBTQIA+ support groups and make friends with people with different sexual orientations so that you can have one-on-one discussions with them about their experiences.
You may often wonder why some individuals are gay while others are straight. Some individuals feel they were born with a specific orientation whereas others feel their orientation changed as they grew older.
The million Dollar question will always be if orientation is caused by nature, nurture, or a combination of the two. The answer is not important. What is important is that we always accept and respect the sexual orientation of others and yourself.
