ASEXUALITY AND HEALTHCARE A PRIMER
1. People who are asexual experience little to no sexual attraction to others. 2. Asexuality is not a disorder. 3. According to one study, asexual people might make up 1% of the world's population.
1. Lack of sexual desire has been historically pathologized and perpetuated as being unnatural. 2. Many healthcare providers are unaware of the existence of asexual identities, and treat them as a problem to be fixed or cured. 3. Others might guess from a patient's being asexual that they have been abused, incorrectly assuming that asexuality must have a negative cause.
"Asexual discovery dialogues are full of people finding the asexual community and uttering phrases like 'I thought I was broken' or 'I was terrified I would never be able to be happy'--and these fears did not develop spontaneously, nor do they reflect inherent recognitions of something missing. These fears were instilled by people who believe asexuality is unacceptable, and like it or not, it often falls upon the experts to whom we are referred to evaluate us, reassure us, and give us guidance. They cannot do so responsibly if they know little to nothing about this nuanced and diverse orientation." -Julie Sondra Decker, "Asexuality and the Health Professional" "Asexuality was never explicitly listed as a disorder in the DSM, but Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder and some other sexuality variations were often attached to mental health patients who presented with a persistent lack of sexual interest in or attraction to others, and only in the most recent edition of the manual is asexuality even mentioned to exist." -Julie Sondra Decker, "Asexuality and the Health Professional"
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