Proculsexual

Proculsexual refers to a sexual orientation or self-description for people who experience sexual attraction mainly or exclusively toward individuals with whom a sexual relationship or sexual contact is perceived as unreachable, impossible, or ruled out. This may include people who are very far away, unavailable, fictional, famous, or otherwise inaccessible. The term is often associated with the asexual spectrum, because sexual attraction may be present but occurs only under specific conditions.

Being proculsexual does not automatically mean that a person has no sexuality, cannot have relationships, or is generally afraid of real-life closeness. What matters is the pattern of sexual attraction, not an outside judgment of someone’s relationship or sex life. Some proculsexual people experience attraction precisely because real sexual contact is not possible; for others, the experience may be more complex, situational, or change over time.

As with all sexual orientations and self-descriptions, the term should only be used when a person finds it appropriate for themselves. Proculsexual attraction does not justify crossing other people’s boundaries: even when the attraction concerns inaccessible, well-known, or real people, respect, privacy, and consent still apply. The term is not a medical or psychological diagnosis and should not be hastily interpreted as “fear of intimacy,” avoidance, or a disorder.