Autosexual is a sexual orientation on the asexual spectrum when one experiences sexual attraction primarily or exclusively towards oneself; and can occur in many forms as follows:
- Having a hard time responding to someone's sexual touch, but being able to or is comfortable with self pleasing like masturbation.
- Feeling little or no attraction to others sexually but feeling attraction to yourself.
- Fantasizing about sexual interaction with yourself.
- Feeling attraction to yourself more than what is considered "normal."
The romantic counterpart to autosexual is autoromantic.
History
Autosexual was first used as a very specific term used by Bernard Apfelbaum, a PHD graduate in clinical psychology, in 1989, in his work on the book "Principles and Practice of Sex Therapy". He considered it as a sexual abnormality. Often autosexuals do not seek out sexual relationships as it is simply a way of life and how they feel about others; it is strictly the attraction to oneself and is not a psychological or sexual abnormality. It was once considered to be a narcissistic trait, mischaracterizing both NPD & autosexuality.
Flag
The first flag was made by Tumblr user aturinfortheworse, also known as Ruin, on December 13, 2011.[1] She did not specify the meaning behind the flag's symbolism.
The second flag was designed by Ruthie on November 21, 2020. It is inspired by the original flag's colors. The shades of blue represents self compassion and self care, the heart represents self love, and the grey represents the ace-spec category.
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Etymology
The prefix comes from the Greek term 'auto', meaning 'self'.