As far as my own life experience has been, people tell me that it’s not typical to want to kiss and cuddle with people you consider your platonic friends.
Obviously the line between romantic and platonic is probably different for everyone, but at least in my own experience this is a non-normative experience.
I have only recently started hearing people talk about being aplatonic and discovered the word for myself. Discovering the concept has really helped me understand a lot about myself and become better able to describe myself, so I’m glad that by talking about it, I’ve opened up a potential avenue for self discovery for you, too. <3
I’m sorry but wtf are aplatonics. Are you like. Really bad friends. What’s going on here. Somebody pls explain it to me
aplatonic people don’t feel the urge to form platonic relationships.
We may also have trouble identifying what exactly is supposed to separate a platonic relationship from a romantic one, or identifying the demands and expectations for maintaining a platonic relationship.
note that “i don’t feel the need to form friendships and don’t feel the strong connection that other people apparently do” doesn’t necessarily mean they’re bad at it or a dick. aplatonic people tend to be the person who never really makes it past Acquaintances with others, and are typically fine with that.
Also note that one can (as I am) be aplatonic and also alloromantic.
Oki oki oki QUESTION: if you can be aplatonic and alloromantic, there must be a difference between platonic and romantic love. I’m struggling to understand it for quite some time now, can you please enlighten me??
I can only speak for myself. I am not speaking for all people about their experience of platonic and romantic attraction.
When I experience “love” (defined here as an attraction where I want to keep a person as part of my life on a consistent basis, and help them grow and nurture them as a person) it is always accompanied by the desire to do things with that person that I personally consider ‘romantic’ (as well as sexual, because I am an allosexual person also.)
When I experience an interpersonal relationship with someone that I want to maintain on a consistent basis, I want to kiss them, have sex with them, taken them out dancing, try on fancy clothes with them, fight to the death side by side with them, etc etc.
You SHOULD be proud! That’s a lot of work you’re doing! You SHOULD write what brings you joy. Be self indulgent—you’ll love your writing, and yourself, more for it 💖
