Paraphilias - Intro Text WIP
Sep. 8th, 2021 02:22 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
paraphiliadiseThe following will be summarized to be put into a set of drawings.
(definition of paraphilia and sources linked from paraphilia.carrd.co, may add more sources or reference differently in the drawings)
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Paraphilias are attractions to unusual actions (also called kinks), attractions to unusual objects (also called fetishes), and attractions to unusual beings.
Unusual here refers to social norms. Because social norms differ from place-to-place, the definition of paraphilia differs as well!
Like with non-paraphiliac attraction, paraphilias can be sexual, romantic, both, or neither. There can be overlap with aspec (aromantic and asexual) identities.
Among a sample of 1,915 people, a study found 62.4% with paraphilia-associated attractions and that only 1.7% of that had distress about it. In another study, 44.9% of 10,044 people admitted paraphiliac preferences and 20.5% of those reported more than one paraphilia. This is a recurring pattern among paraphilia studies - though paraphilias are misunderstood, they are not as unusual among society as most think.
Yet "paraphilia" has been used as a label for "wrong" attractions. Same-gender attractions were considered paraphilias, and in some places still are. Objectophilias, too, were demonized as "wrong" despite attraction to objects not hurting anyone - now, objectophilia has been recognized by some neurodivergent communities as common among autistic people.
However, those who support some paraphilias like objectophilia can still be against other paraphilias, such as sadism.
Having a paraphilia does not automatically turn hurtful depending on what the attraction is. If some paraphiliacs can be attracted without hurting themself / others, then that means all paraphiliacs are capable of being attracted without harm.
Even "harmful" paraphilias can be acted out in safe, consensual ways, such as through BDSM or through toys. And paraphilias such as objectophilia and fictophilia can typically be explored anytime.
Some communities, such as the mental health communities, emphasize that "thought crimes don't exist" - that feelings and thoughts do not equal harm. That actions harm.
This helps people with disorders or urges to understand that they shouldn't be demonized for thought crimes. They find out that they aren't predisposed to hurting others just because of feelings.
Attractions count as feelings and thoughts. While not all paraphiliacs have it or need mental health resources, there is a reason why "paraphilia disorder" can be a diagnosis. Stigmatizing paraphilias is one thing that discourages many paraphiliacs from understanding their attractions and how to explore them in safe ways.
They may even feel like they have to hurt themselves in order to not hurt others. Paraphiliacs are not inherently dangerous people for their feelings and thoughts. It's actions that harm, not thought crimes.
Yet, because many are not aware of paraphilias and how it isn't inherently about actions, people spread anti-paraphilia messages that further stigmatize an already misunderstood concept. Many serious words are watered down until they lose the original definition. That is why it is important to research and understand paraphilia.
(definition of paraphilia and sources linked from paraphilia.carrd.co, may add more sources or reference differently in the drawings)
-
Paraphilias are attractions to unusual actions (also called kinks), attractions to unusual objects (also called fetishes), and attractions to unusual beings.
Unusual here refers to social norms. Because social norms differ from place-to-place, the definition of paraphilia differs as well!
Like with non-paraphiliac attraction, paraphilias can be sexual, romantic, both, or neither. There can be overlap with aspec (aromantic and asexual) identities.
Among a sample of 1,915 people, a study found 62.4% with paraphilia-associated attractions and that only 1.7% of that had distress about it. In another study, 44.9% of 10,044 people admitted paraphiliac preferences and 20.5% of those reported more than one paraphilia. This is a recurring pattern among paraphilia studies - though paraphilias are misunderstood, they are not as unusual among society as most think.
Yet "paraphilia" has been used as a label for "wrong" attractions. Same-gender attractions were considered paraphilias, and in some places still are. Objectophilias, too, were demonized as "wrong" despite attraction to objects not hurting anyone - now, objectophilia has been recognized by some neurodivergent communities as common among autistic people.
However, those who support some paraphilias like objectophilia can still be against other paraphilias, such as sadism.
Having a paraphilia does not automatically turn hurtful depending on what the attraction is. If some paraphiliacs can be attracted without hurting themself / others, then that means all paraphiliacs are capable of being attracted without harm.
Even "harmful" paraphilias can be acted out in safe, consensual ways, such as through BDSM or through toys. And paraphilias such as objectophilia and fictophilia can typically be explored anytime.
Some communities, such as the mental health communities, emphasize that "thought crimes don't exist" - that feelings and thoughts do not equal harm. That actions harm.
This helps people with disorders or urges to understand that they shouldn't be demonized for thought crimes. They find out that they aren't predisposed to hurting others just because of feelings.
Attractions count as feelings and thoughts. While not all paraphiliacs have it or need mental health resources, there is a reason why "paraphilia disorder" can be a diagnosis. Stigmatizing paraphilias is one thing that discourages many paraphiliacs from understanding their attractions and how to explore them in safe ways.
They may even feel like they have to hurt themselves in order to not hurt others. Paraphiliacs are not inherently dangerous people for their feelings and thoughts. It's actions that harm, not thought crimes.
Yet, because many are not aware of paraphilias and how it isn't inherently about actions, people spread anti-paraphilia messages that further stigmatize an already misunderstood concept. Many serious words are watered down until they lose the original definition. That is why it is important to research and understand paraphilia.
