Yes, even though gender and sexuality labels can help other people understand you, they only help to the extent that they describe you and convey that description. So the labels that work for you are the ones you really want.
As far as romantic orientation goes, it looks from what I've seen here that you're closer to demiromantic than aro, and probably more intensely demi on that axis than sexuality.
Thanks for liking my phrasing of your position in gender space, but credit primarily to you for laying it out well enough for me to do it.
Socialized introvert here (and just saw recently that's common enough to be an actual thing!), and likewise enough at odds with neurotypical behavior to complicate social things. And the subtext dialect I was indoctrinated into was never a good enough fit for it to be better than a struggle for me. Sounds like we share many of the same obstacles.
For me, it was more about dissatisfaction with the default template that presumed I was supposed to find the reflexive cishet ideology my parents and folks of their generation espoused desirable and fulfilling, and figuring out how I might build a relationship in that context, that freed me up enough to explore. Love that you have an open mind, and have found a way to free yourself. Good luck!
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Re: Wise to be wary
Date: 2021-06-20 09:43 pm (UTC)As far as romantic orientation goes, it looks from what I've seen here that you're closer to demiromantic than aro, and probably more intensely demi on that axis than sexuality.
Thanks for liking my phrasing of your position in gender space, but credit primarily to you for laying it out well enough for me to do it.
Socialized introvert here (and just saw recently that's common enough to be an actual thing!), and likewise enough at odds with neurotypical behavior to complicate social things. And the subtext dialect I was indoctrinated into was never a good enough fit for it to be better than a struggle for me. Sounds like we share many of the same obstacles.
For me, it was more about dissatisfaction with the default template that presumed I was supposed to find the reflexive cishet ideology my parents and folks of their generation espoused desirable and fulfilling, and figuring out how I might build a relationship in that context, that freed me up enough to explore. Love that you have an open mind, and have found a way to free yourself. Good luck!