Although people have always explored their sexuality in some way or another, it seems to be a more common public discussion in recent years. This includes people who are coming out in ways that we didn’t even know existed.
One way that seems to be very popular these days is for people to come out as symbiosexual. This may be a new word to many, but it is not necessarily new in the LGBTQ community.
Symbiosexual is a relatively new phrase coined by those in the non-monogamy and LGBTQ communities. Those who claim to be coming out as such are individuals who don’t hold onto jealousy and those who claim to be extroverted. In essence, they crave intimacy and they ‘desire to be desired’.
That’s an interesting way to say it, but what would be a good definition of symbiosexual? We might think about those who claim to be such, as they may want to get married or be in a long-term relationship. They may even want multiple people in that relationship but they don’t want to be on their own.
They are not attracted to one gender or another but rather, they seem to be attracted to the energy shared between couples or in a multi-partner relationship. It’s difficult to pin down, because someone who claims to be symbiosexual may have a number of identities at the same time.
One researcher who has published on the subject, Dr. Sally W. Johnston describes it this way: “It is the attraction to the relationship and/or energy shared between people that makes symbios**uality distinct from pluris**ualities such as bis**uality or pans**uality.
“Symbios**uality is also distinct from an interest in or preference for relationship structures involving three or more people, as this interest does not necessarily imply an experience of attraction to relationship dynamics between people (pre-existing or not).”
The Pleasure Study from 2023 was examined by the doctor. Almost 400 people were surveyed about their gender and sexual identity to fully understand what was taking place.
A relationship expert in psychology professor, Wendy Walsh, said: “Some people said they were attracted to just the love and the secure attachment.
“Some were attracted to their aesthetic, like the two people as a couple, just looked really cool together. Some people were attracted to how they played with gender roles.”
About 145 of those who responded said they had feelings of attraction to couples rather than individuals inside of a relationship.
One participant said: “You feed off their energy, their attraction to each other… there’s an interplay between the couple.”
Dr. Johnson said that ‘more research is needed on how people make sense of their experiences of attraction to people in relationships in the context of their s**ual orientation and the sociocultural messages and information they have received about s**uality.’
This is a new term that may help people to feel more comfortable with themselves and the identity they hold.
