You can't cure your quirks.

You can't cure your quirks.

The negative emotions brought about by having a sexual fetish cover a wide range, from mild embarrassment to deep shame. Some people have specific sexual interests related to their fetish, and these interests are so common that we hardly consider them as sexual fetishes; while others are attracted to certain things that are too dangerous to do in real life. No matter which stage you and your sexual fetish are at, one thing is certain... It will probably never disappear.

Scientists have been unable to find a clear explanation for why some people eventually develop a sexual preference while others do not. Currently, the best understanding we have of sexual preferences is that they are most similar to sexual orientation. They are almost impossible to change and seem random. Although an event in your life might have sparked your interest in a sexual preference, that event may not be the "cause" of it. Some factors increase your likelihood of developing a sexual preference (such as being male), but you cannot avoid these factors.

Whether your sexual preference merely causes you inconvenience or brings about more significant problems, you will be curious if there is some magical therapy that can cure it. Asking such a question can replace the feeling of real sadness and accepting it. No matter how the universe operates, your final sexual orientation will be like this. Although this might be difficult, it can also be astonishing.

Your sexual orientation is not a disease that needs to be cured.

If "Can I get rid of it?" is the first question that those unfortunate people with sexual preferences would ask, then "Why me?" is likely to be the second question. Sometimes, this way of questioning is very helpful. A small number of people can trace their sexual preferences back to a traumatic sexual experience, and this experience has now been pornified by their brains. Sometimes, trying to heal the trauma can reduce the attraction of sexual preferences. Sometimes, trying to heal the trauma itself feels good, but it does not change your sexual orientation. Sometimes, recreating the elements of the trauma in a safe environment for a negotiated BDSM scenario is itself a form of healing.

But if you don't fall into that small group of people who realize they have transformed their trauma into a sexual preference, then asking "why?" won't be of much use. Suppressed memories are extremely rare and are more like urban legends than real phenomena. Although theoretically, you might have had pre-language experiences that affected your sexual interests, asking "why?" over and over again won't help you remember it.

"Why" is usually just a substitute for "I don't want this to be true".

Just like the desire for healing, asking "why" is usually the way our brains deal with difficult facts while maintaining a safe and rational distance. It feels easier than feeling sad and accepting reality.

Both of these methods are quite easy to understand. However, when people bring these methods to my office, I hope to help them directly move on to more effective questions: "Well, what should we do now?" Because although you cannot cure your sexual preference, asking why you have this preference is also unanswerable, but sexual therapy does have some effective methods that can help you confront your sexual orientation.

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