Various types of sexual orientations have received recognition from society more than ever before. Today, we can proudly say that people are free to express their sexual tendencies and desires without feeling judged or misunderstood.
Sexual orientation has become a crucial part of a person’s identity. People worldwide are fighting against conservative opinions to finally feel more comfortable expressing their emotional and sexual status while also being accepted by the public.
And because the war of accepting unconventional forms of sexualities and relationships is slowly ending, you may feel confused about the different sexual orientations you can come across nowadays and how they differ.
Therefore, we’ve decided to help you learn everything about polysexuality and how it works. So stick around, as this article can clarify this topic, and you can be one step closer to defining different types of sexualities we can come across.
What is polysexuality?
So what is polysexuality, and what defines it as a sexual orientation? Before we go deeper into understanding how polysexuality works, it’s best to cover its terminology and meaning.
The prefix poly means ‘’many’’– which indicates that it stands for the ability to be attracted to more than one person of different gender and sexual orientation. Polysexuality is a non-monogamous sexual orientation that differs depending on the individual and their preferences.
A person that identifies as polysexual can be attracted to almost every type of sexuality and gender, which makes it a fluid form of sexual orientation. Therefore, polysexuality connects people who are open-minded and open to experimenting with their love life and sexuality.
Also, you don’t have to have previous polysexual experiences to identify as polysexual. Any form of sexuality doesn’t rely on your history but on who you find attractive.
However, the definition faces challenges, as defining polysexuality is nothing like solving a mathematical equation. Every polysexual individual chooses how they want to identify with this type of sexual orientation, depending on which gender and sexual orientation they are attracted to.
How does a polysexual relationship work?
A relationship between two polysexual individuals functions similarly to any other type of monogamous relationship. Polysexual relationships don’t differ from other dating forms but face various challenges, as people can misinterpret polysexuality and how it functions in a relationship.
Although it may seem that polysexual relationships can be challenging, polysexual couples can make their relationship work out and easily overcome any challenges they may face. Openness to understanding a partner’s sexual orientation and desires makes this experience more easily than it seems. However, this depends on the individuals and their relationship with one another.
In this case, every person involved in the relationship knows that the other person is attracted to different genders and sexual orientations. On the other hand, many people connect polysexuality to a polyamorous relationship, which are different things we will cover in the following subheading.
What makes it different from other types of sexual orientations?
It almost seems impossible to memorize the differences between different sexual orientations, as being conscious about other people’s sexual identities has become a norm in today’s society.
And because there are so many sexual orientations nowadays, people pay attention to learning the difference between them to understand a person’s emotional and sexual preferences and try to overcome any uncomfortable scenarios.
Here are some facts about different sexual orientations and their definitions:
- Polyamory refers to the ability to be involved in more than one romantic relationship while every party involved is aware of the existence of other partners;
- Bisexual people are attracted to their gender and at least one other gender;
- Pansexual people don’t even consider gender when choosing a partner but rather choose their partners based on other qualities;
- Queer refers to identifying anything other than heterosexual, so homosexual, lesbian, and transgender individuals may identify as queer.
The types of sexualities we’ve mentioned above are just some of the sexualities you may come across. There are many more sexual orientations that have their definitions and way of functioning.
The bottom line is that polysexuality differs from other sexual orientations based on one’s ability to be attracted to multiple individuals of different genders.
Polysexual flag and its meaning
The polysexual flag consists of pink, green, and blue stripes. Like any flag of sexual orientation, every color has its meaning. Learning what the colors on the flag mean can help you understand what polysexuality represents and how it functions.
The pink color represents attraction to women, the green color represents attraction to non-binary individuals, and the blue color represents attraction to men. The flag indicates that polysexual people can feel romantic and sexual attraction towards more genders, but that doesn’t mean they are attracted to every existing gender.
So technically, the colors on the polysexual flag don’t necessarily have to define every person’s preferences, as every individual who identifies as polysexual has a unique identity.
Myths about polysexuality
Because gender fluidity is still in the process of being socially accepted and understood, many people can create wrong assumptions, judgments, stereotypes, and misconceptions about polysexuality and what it represents. Here are some of them:
- Polysexual people are unable to be in a monogamous relationship;
- Polysexual people are unfaithful;
- Polysexual people are out of control, and hypersexual;
- Polysexual men are more feminine and probably just gay;
- Polysexual women are more masculine and probably lesbian.
These are just some of the misconceptions about people who identify as polysexual and are, in fact, incorrect.
Being polysexual means having the freedom to explore gender fluidity and see which genders a person is attracted to.
Signs that indicate that a person is polysexual
It can be challenging to conclude whether someone is polysexual, especially based on someone’s physical look, style of living, career, and other factors. Not every polysexual person is comfortable sharing their sexual orientation with others, so you could even be surprised to learn which people are polysexual.
On the other hand, some signs can indicate that you or any other person are polysexual:
- Tendencies to have a crush on different genders
- When picturing your soul mate, you can’t seem to imagine the gender that person is
- Openness toward experimenting with various forms of sexuality
- Trouble expressing your sexuality due to the fear of being rejected or judged by society
A person’s polysexuality covers a wide range of sexual and romantic identification norms, and it can be hard to be aware of based on physical factors.
Which challenges do polysexual people face?
Like many other sexual orientations, polysexuality has experienced many challenges toward becoming an appreciated sexual identity. And while polysexual people are fighting for their rights, they may also face many problems, even today.
- Explaining what polysexuality is and how it differs from other sexual orientations;
- Daily judgment and fake accusations;
- Fear of rejectment;
- Inability to show emotions due to their fear of being rejected;
- Potential harmful situations caused by polyphobic people.
Because being polysexual wasn’t classified as a normal occurrence in the past, many people who are polysexual would rather identify as heterosexual to avoid any inconveniences along the way.
How to show support for polysexual people?
If you know someone who is polysexual, you might have already thought about how you can make their experience less stressful by supporting their sexual preferences and choices. It should also be the case if you haven’t met a polysexual person but may meet someone in the future.
By showing your support toward polysexual people, we are one step closer to normalizing different types of sexualities and giving everyone a chance to be open with their sexuality. Therefore, even if you don’t seem to understand how someone can like more than one gender, do your best by respecting every person’s sexual orientation.
Try to show your support by closely listening to their problems, talking about their emotions, and doing anything that can positively affect a polysexual person to feel safe and accepted. Also, you can support pride events and other queer-based support events.
Where can you find support if you’re polysexual?
If you’re polysexual, the chances are you may have experienced many challenges while trying to fit into society. It can also be hard to get respect from others, and you may feel that your sexual orientation is keeping you away from your life goals.
The best advice we can give you is to rely on the LGBTQ+ community, as every individual probably knows what you’re going through. Sharing your emotions, concerns, and problems with people who have also experienced similar things you did can help you deal with everything a bit easier.
Also, many support call centers for polysexual people can help you cope with the challenges you may face.
Polysexuality and health
When we talk about polysexuality and the health state of people who are polysexual, we can conclude that other than facing social issues, polysexual people may experience challenges regarding their mental and physical health.
Polysexual people can potentially experience anxiety and depression due to their inability to express their sexual preferences. Also, many individuals who identify as polysexual can develop other severe mental health issues based on past experiences.
Thankfully, polysexuality has its benefits regarding sexual health, as polysexual people are prone to expressing their feelings and desires, which can positively affect their sex drive. Also, polysexuality can be healthy for monogamous relationships as long as both persons involved work on understanding and respecting each other’s desires.
Polysexuality in pop culture
Polysexuality is slowly receiving recognition, and pop culture affected its acceptance as many celebrities openly talk about their unconventional sexual orientations. Many celebrities choose to share their sexual orientations with the public in hopes of showing polysexual people to come out of their shells and freely express themselves.
Many celebrities are gender fluid, like Miley Cyrus, Willow Smith, and Lady Gaga. But not every pop celebrity identifies as only polysexual but most likely expresses themselves through different types of sexualities.
Thankfully, pop culture has made the LGBTQ+ community grow stronger and receive both rights and recognition from more people worldwide. On the other hand, that made room for other challenges to arise, as not everyone supports the idea of openness about unconventional sexual orientations.
Pros and Cons
Polysexuallity has its good and bad sides, and if you’re having trouble understanding what being polysexual carries along with it, it would be best to learn about the pros and cons of polysexuality and polysexual individuals.
Pros
- Ability to explore your sexuality and openly talk about it;
- Deeper connections with your partner;
- Sexual health benefits;
- A large community of supportive and like-minded people;
- Normalization of gender-fluid concepts;
- Maintaining deeper connections with your partners;
- Self-awareness;
- Personal growth.
Cons
- Misjudgment;
- Misunderstanding;
- Stereotypes;
- Polyphobia;
- Potential threats you may experience;
- Fear of being rejected or abandoned;
- Inability to express your sexual orientation out of fear;
- Troubles finding a secure career path due to your sexual orientation.
All in all, polysexuality has flaws, but it can also bring many good things to those attracted to more than one gender. Defining both good and bad sides can help you deal with your situation and decide whether you want to share your sexual preferences with others.
Conclusion
Sexual attraction is a phenomenon that existed thousands of years ago, and to this day, it seems like anything other than a monogamous heterosexual relationship hasn’t been completely accepted as a normal occurrence among millions of poly-curious people.
However, polysexuality and other sexual orientations have faced many positive changes over the past decade due to the LGBTQ+ community that works hard to support every sexual orientation group and individual.
Although it does seem like we are way behind in accepting different sexual orientations, it’s clear that the non-heterosexual stigma has come to an end. Anyone can mostly feel safe talking about their sexual orientation and preferences.
We hope this article has found you well and helped you get more information about the topic of polysexuality.