Sexuality – resources for all
Sexuality and sexual orientation is about who a person is physically and emotionally attracted to. Everyone has a sexual orientation – lesbian, straight, bisexual, gay or one of many other types. And this might change over time.
Some people know when they’re very young who they fancy – for other people it is not so simple and it can take a while to work out.
It might take a person some time to work out what their sexual orientation is. Remember there’s no such thing as ‘normal’ – no one should feel pressured or rushed to give themselves a label.
There are lots of types of sexuality and its okay if you don’t fit into just one. For some people their sexuality is fluid and can change over time.
Some common terms used to describe sexuality are listed on the Childline website at www.childline.org.uk/sexual-identity – you will also find other great resources on this website.
Asexuality
- Asexuality is completely normal – 1% of the world population is asexual.
Most modern experts on sexuality consider asexuality the fourth orientation after hetero, homo and bisexuality. However unlike most forms of sexuality, there have been virtually no studies on asexuality.
- Childline has published a short film looking at asexuality and some of the myths surrounding it – view the short film Childline voice box: asexuality at www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8hsJGRL-ik
