/u/NineEyes9 on Rewind to highschool (or maybe you're there now): What do you wish you could have heard in sex ed about ace/acespec?

I didn't realize I was asexual until I was much older, even though looking back I would have realized instantly early on if I had ever been aware of the concept. For me personally learning the difference between aesthetic and sexual attraction really helped, as did the metaphor of 'being able to enjoy food but never feeling hungry'.

When I was in health class there was absolutely no mention of almost anything LGBTQ+, and that's coming from a blue state, so honestly the fact that you're mentioning that we exist at all is a huge step up :' D I think in general just introducing the concept of 'gender and sexuality aren't neat perfect little boxes you tick, but are a sliding scale of different ways to identify' is a great place to start teaching the idea that you don't have to fit every single requirement perfectly when figuring out who you are, everyone is going to have their own personal experiences and that doesn't mean you're broken. In my experience there's a lot of pressure at that age to conform to a group and find your people, which can be really hard for aspec folk since we're only 1% of the population, so assuring kids that there are people like them out there and that just because they cant relate to the majority of their peers doesnt mean there's anything wrong with them.

September 07, 2021 at 12:51AM