I'm wondering what sexuality I should identify as... since I think I'm somewhat of an unusual case. I usually tell people I'm bisexual, as I do find both genders attractive, but how much I find them attractive changes drastically every few months. Right now I would say that I'm at least a 5 or so on the scale, but maybe a month ago I was a 1. A few months before that I was a 5, and I imagine in a few more months I'll be a 1 again. Is there a word for that, other than "Sometimes straight, sometimes gay"? lol Also, I tend to say that I'm straight, bi, or gay based on the situation, favoring whichever will benefit me the most in that particular situation. Do you think it's okay to do that, or should I just stick to bi? I mean, they're all true some of the time, but I wonder if it could get me in trouble at some point. lol It may also be worth noting that until late last spring, I was a very solid 0. I had never even considered the possibility of not being straight... but once it opened up to me, I guess I just embraced it without any second thoughts. (I'm usually pretty quick to adapt to new things. My denial period was like, 1 week, even though I was and still am a Christian.) Just trying to sort it all out in my own head, haha.
Actually, from observing the cases of the people on this fine site, it seems fairly common for.. "bisexual-identifying" people to have swings of attraction. Sometimes it switches every few months, sometimes by day or situation (the people around you, for instance), sometimes changing within the day. I have similar swings with my attraction toward women. I've always been emotionally, physically, and sexually attracted to men; but my feelings toward women seems to change based on mood. One day the idea of doing anything sexual with a women makes me want to puke, the next day I could be more ambivalent toward the idea, though not "turned on" by it. Sometimes I'm just physically attracted to women, but not in the least bit sexually. And then there's the case of masculine-acting women that I can be extremely emotionally attracted to - etc., etc., etc. (Sorry for that rant ) For your question though, of how to identify - I'd just say go with whatever feels right . Personally, I like the umbrella term 'queer' (essentially, "not straight"). Covers all the potential intricacies of attraction and sexual orientation
How you identify is personal choice, e.g. I tend not to words like "bisexual", "straight" etc, but some people do - it's all about how you feel regarding the words you use. Just because I'm in a great relationship with a great guy at the moment doesn't mean to me that I'm "straight", it's just my preference for a relationship at the moment - I choose to be with this guy because I love him, the person, irrespective of gender. I outwardly through the choice I've made in my relationship portray that I'm "straight", but it's how I feel about it inside that matters. I totally agree with Shades of Grey - go with whatever makes you feel comfortable, forget about labels that sometimes I think we all feel the need to attach to ourselves.
Yeah, I guess. I feel like I want a single term that I'm very confident in, though. As it is, nothing seems right to me. I guess I should just stick with what I've been doing though. It's not a huge deal, just wanted other opinions.
We use these kinds of identity terms to describe the pattern of attraction we have experienced in our lives. If you have experienced significant attractions to more than one sex or gender, it makes sense to identify as bisexual. Many bisexuals experience big fluctuations in who they are attracted to, noticing men at some times and women at others.
I would say to go with bisexual, but just asking is the whole "hipshe" thing real? Is that a term that any people actually use?
To be honest, bisexual sounds like it makes most sense for you. You don't have to justify it be claiming at all times to be attracted to both.
