Counseling Center

Sexual Orientation

Sexual orientation is one part of our identity , those factors that make up who and what we are. Our sexual orientation is just as much a part of us as is our culture, ethnicity, gender and a variety of unique personality traits. We currently use terms including heterosexual (straight), homosexual (gay/lesbian), bisexual, and queer to describe sexual orientation.

According to the American Psychological Association, sexual orientation is: “an enduring emotional, romantic, sexual, or affectional attraction that a person feels toward another person”. Many people, including psychologists and doctors, feel that sexual orientation falls along a continuum. That means that most of us are not exclusively heterosexual (totally straight) or exclusively homosexual (entirely gay) but can have a variety of feelings when it comes to being attracted to other people. It is also believed that our sexual orientation develops over our lifetime. That is, different people realize at different points in their lives that they are straight, gay, lesbian, or bisexual. In addition, as with many things, what we do and who we are can be different for each of us. Sexual behavior does not necessarily equate to sexual orientation. Many people may identify themselves as gay or bisexual without having had any sexual experience. Others have had sexual experiences with a person of the same gender, but do not consider themselves to be gay, lesbian, or bisexual.

If you have questions or would like to talk with someone about sexual orientation please contact:

Help at SIUC
Counseling Center, Student Health Center building, Room 256, 453-5371
Wellness Center, Student Health Center building, Room 120A, 536-4441
GLBT Resource Center, 453-6804, Woody Hall
Saluki Rainbow Network(SRN), Prideline: (618) 453- 5151

Help in the Carbondale Community
PFLAG: Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays
The Rainbow Café:Southern Illinois' GLBT youth group

Links to Additional Resources
The Human Rights Campaign: http://www.hrc.org/

Comments: Webmaster