Australia: Asexuals struggle to come out in this sexed-up world

Sex sells. Whether you're getting it or not, it's hard to avoid it. So imagine what it would be like to live in this sexed-up world and yet never experience sexual attraction. We're not talking about lapses in libido, or a decline in desire. We're talking about asexuality.

Although the visibility around it has increased in recent years, the first time I learned about it was when I met my friend Steph in 2015. She is asexual and aromantic — which means she doesn't experience sexual or romantic attraction. Steph learned she was asexual seven years ago at the age of 19. After a confusing and upsetting adolescence, it all clicked into place.

"I knew straight away when I heard of it that that was me," she says. "I remember exactly where I was, I was driving home from uni. They were talking about it on triple j and it hit me, right there."

In more recent years since Steph's coming out, there has been some representation of asexuality within popular culture — indeed, there's been more discussion around diversity in the media in general. But, she says, plenty of people still have no idea that asexuality exists as a sexual identity. Read more via ABC