Gone are the days of concrete sexuality. Stepping outside the boxes of “gay” or “straight,” we find a host of other orientations – even beyond bisexuality. Researchers have confirmed what people have experienced for ages before there was even a term for it: Sexual fluidity. It’s real and much more common than we think.
Fluid Sexuality Defined
Fluidity refers to the ever-changing nature of sexual responsiveness. Responsiveness is the key indicator because to be sexually fluid does not mean a person is straight one day and homosexual the next. Rather, sexual preference can change based on a number of factors, namely environmental. For example, if a man who identified as heterosexual was suddenly placed into an all-male environment, he may start to develop same-sex attraction over time.
One of the most notable scientific studies on sexuality was conducted by Alfred Kinsey. The 20th-century biologist created the Kinsey Scale to indicate the wide range of sexual identifications based on his studies of human sexuality. According to Kinsey, any given person would fall between 0 and 6 with asexual beings noted with an “X.”
0: Exclusively heterosexual
1: Predominantly heterosexual, only incidentally homosexual
2: Predominantly heterosexual, but more than incidentally homosexual
3: Equally heterosexual and homosexual
4: Predominantly homosexual, but more than incidentally heterosexual
5: Predominantly homosexual, only incidentally heterosexual
6: Exclusively homosexual
Examples of Sexual Fluidity
Where it begins to get more complex is in the understanding that bisexuality and fluidity are not one in the same. The former refers to someone who identifies with having romantic or sexual attraction toward both genders, male or female. The latter can best be described as the gray areas of human sexuality and romantic behaviors. To further complicate the matter, we must also look at gender identity and romantic love versus sexual desire. For example, how can we categorize men who identify as women who love women? We can’t. Similarly, how do we define someone in a sexual relationship with one who has fallen into romantic love with another?
Fluidity in the Spotlight
Many Hollywood stars have brought fluidity into living room conversations.
- Miley Cyrus remarked, “I am literally open to every single thing that is consenting and doesn’t involve an animal and everyone is of age.”
- Demi Lovato spoke out in support of sexual exploration.
- Tom Hardy said, “I’m an artist. I’ve played with everything and everyone. But I’m not into men sexually.”
Sexual, romantic and gender fluidity are as natural as any other human desire. We at Jack and Jill support these and other sexually liberating beliefs from the normalization of adult toys to consensual BDSM. As long as you’re happy and healthy, you do you!
