Autism and Sexuality: Are They Related?

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Sexuality is as much a subject of controversy as ASD. Discrimination and misconceptions a riddled throughout the matrix of society like holes in swiss cheese. But before I go any further, I'll give you a quick run-down on the different sexualities, as best I can.

Heterosexual: You like to choose mates of the opposite sex. Boy+Girl
Homosexual: You like to choose mates of the same sex. Boy+Boy, Girl+Girl.
Bisexual: You like to choose mates of both sexes. Boy+Boy, Girl+Girl, Boy+Girl.
Asexual: You don't want a mate at all. Boy<->Girl, Gir<->Girl, Boy<->Boy.
Transexual: (While not really a sexuality, people with be all over me if I don't include it) You are one sex, but feel like another. Boy->Girl, Girl->Boy.
Pansexual: Sexual gender doesn't matter at all. You'll choose a mate through personality. Boy+Boy, Girl+Girl, Boy+Girl

Now, some people think that sexuality is purely a choice, some think you're born with it, and some think it's affected by a mental condition. I don't really agree with any of these. If you're homosexual, you're homosexual.

But I've recently gone and gotten myself to thinking that autism may influence your sexual preference. My aversion to people and dislike for physical contact has made me wonder if I'm really asexual, or just undecided and confused. I became convinced I was Asexual a year ago, but now I'm starting to question it.

So what do you think? Do you think ASD actually affects sexuality? Or is it all propaganda rambled on by a crazy old kid in a corner.

I'm transsexual.

Heterosexual, but hopeless. Not sure if it's a coincidence, but many people I know are autistic and/or bisexual.
As with almost everything, I tolerate people as long as their taste doesn't hurt others.

Firstly, your use of the word 'choose' is wrong. Someone who is straight or gay doesn't choose to be attracted to someone. It's just their natural response.

Secondly, someone who is asexual doesn't necessarily not want a partner. I've known asexuals who have been in relationships.

Thirdly, ANYONE can go for someone through personality, not just pansexuals. For example: I identify as gay (I'm female. Dislike the word 'lesbian') and I don't feel attracted to a woman just because she's a woman or just because of her outward appearance. In my case I'm attracted to someone because of personality first and then, after that connection, I feel naturally attracted to them physically too. I know lots of people judge on appearance and first impressions, but this simply isn't right to me (personally) and I like to do it the reverse.

Last edited by Frankie_J on 01 Apr 2012, 4:37 pm, edited 2 times in total.

I seem to primarily be interested in fetishism.

Is trans a sexuality??? I barely consider it my gender, even.

Anyway, bi or homo-romantic with very low sex drive.

What about me? I'm transexual AND pansexual. Which one do I choose?

Sexual/physical attraction - almost exclusively heterosexual
Someone to share life with - pansexual
Actual sex act preference - asexual

This is rather interesting. Someone I know, someone I suspect to be autistic, said he, paraphrasing a bit, "wasn't attracted so much to people, but to a concept."
He is a rather disturbing type. Additionally, someone I know who has been diagnosed has admitted to having some very outlandish tastes.

It seems this forum, at the very least, is a collection of people with some disproportionately-varying sexual tastes.

Both.

This is something I've been thinking about a lot recently and I just can't figure it out. I think a lot of people assume I'm gay because I prefer to hang out with females, but that alone does not make a person "gay". Yeah, I like to hang out with women, but do I love them romantically? Not really. I've never romantically loved or been in love with anybody, male or female. I have found plenty of cute girls I want to get to know, but there are also cute guys I want to get to know. Just as friends, nothing more. I still hate physical contact with either gender.

There was a time where I was certain I was gay because I surrounded myself with girls. No boys allowed. But like I said, I never romantically loved them. They were just friends or people I wanted to get to know.

I've never considered myself a "romantic" or "sexual" person either. Still don't. I dress how I feel most comfortable, be it loose jeans and a baggy t-shirt or a tight dress with leggings. It confuses the heck out of me when guys (or girls) flirt with me and it makes me extremely wary of that person, no matter the gender.

A few years ago I had a friend who was a girl, and whenever I was really sad or anxious I would put my head in her lap, hold her hand, close my eyes, and just sit. Sometimes I would cry. Because of this I think a lot of people assumed I was in love with her, but I wasn't. I loved her, but wasn't in love with her, and I don't get why I can't do that without others jumping to conclusions about myself and about our relationship. By the way, she is straight too. It was just an understanding between us that when I was sad, anxious, or angry, that was what I needed.

Anyway, the moral of the story is that "love" and "sexuality" are two very intangible things, for me anyway, and they aren't things I had previously thought about, so they are too confusing for me to figure out one way or the other. And that's okay.

I don't even know what I am any more.

I can never tell from my past relationships if I was with a guy because I really had feelings for him or if I was just in need for a new kind of friend to show me new experiences and the like. Sometimes for the fun of being a fangirl I will crush on a certain female celebrity (won't say which one) but maybe that is me just fangirling. For the most part I'm certain or at least I would prefer being asexual since I no longer have an interest in relationships.

I'm a lesbian. I know I've asserted that I was bisexual multiple times on this site, but I'm done lying to myself (and everyone else) now. While I sometimes become emotionally attached to men, I've never been sexually attracted to them. On the other hand, I find other women to be very sexually appealing.

It's a shame I have to keep my sexual orientation a secret in real life though, because when I came out when I was 14, I was ostracized and bullied at school, and the adults in my life either wrote it off as a "phase" or got angry with me over what they perceived to be morally wrong.

After hearing so many times that I was just going through a phase, I started to believe it and kept telling myself that I was heterosexual. Eventually I became unhappy with that and just labelled myself as bisexual. But then, I recently realized "hey, who am I kidding?" and finally decided to accept the fact that I am, have been, and always will be, a lesbian.

What does one answer to the poll when the following "joke" is actually true, and not a joke?

I'm a lesbian trapped in a man's body.

It's not quite as true as it was when I was younger, but it still is to an extent. I've always preferred the company of women to men, even though I have had a few male friends over the years. As a kid, I was the one boy that was always found in the kitchen with the women at any get together. Don't pounce on me for that being a sexist remark. It was the way thing were, and for the most part still is in this area. Also, all of the close male friends I have had were out of the ordinary, not in to sports, hunting, or any "macho" type hobbies.

I swear if I'd have been born a woman, I highly doubt I'd want to be with a man.

I'm a gay guy (open to the option of bi/pan sexuality) in a woman's body, so.