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206       SEXU ALIT Y


        Sexuality                                                          SEE ALSO
                                                                           ‹
                                                                            24–25  Gender
                                                                           Different sexual identities    208–209  ›
        Sexuality is more than just having sex. It is the                  Attraction           210–211  ›
        complex interaction of a person’s desires, preferences,            Coming out           212–213  ›
        experiences, and beliefs throughout their life.

        What is sexuality?
        Because everyone’s innate self and experience of being              laws
        in the world are different, everyone’s sexuality is different.   social
        Exploring sexuality can mean thinking about things that   expectations
        aren’t obviously about sex, like the rules in society and
        culture that influence how people behave. Sexuality
        is a marker of a person’s identity, just like their                              beliefs
        gender, hair, eye or skin colour, culture,                                      and values
        or religion.
                                                 media
        Understanding sexuality
        As much as people might want to, it can                      culture
        be hard to tell what factors affect their
        sexuality or why they feel a certain way.
        Some people don’t question or even think
        about their sexuality, while others find that
        their understanding and relationship with
        their sexuality evolves over time. It can be   education
        confusing, particularly for teens who
        become increasingly aware of their
        sexuality during adolescence, but exploring
        sexuality and the ideas connected to it can                  romance
        help teens to understand better this
        important aspect of themselves.





                                                            intimacy
                                                                              relationships








                                                                   sexual
                                                                experiences

                                                                                     consent
        ▷ Influences
        The factors affecting sexuality overlap
        and interlink. There are far more
        factors than this image shows.






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