Could a person think obsessively about members of the same sex and not be gay? Apparently so, according to a psychologist who specializes in Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Dr. Steven Brodsky says he often gets clients — normally male — who worry obsessively about whether or not they stared too long at that hot guy in the shower room (a real concern, apparently) are not necessarily gay. I guess I have to feel bad for guys — women are totally allowed to check out other women all of the time, and we do it too. "Oh, that girl's ass is great. Does she do yoga?" "I totally want tits like hers." No one cares. We don't care. It's expected. But guys do that and they get all Am-I-gay?-phobic.
Dr. Brodsky says that people who have gay OCD (seriously!) have intrusive and anxiety-provoking thoughts about the same sex — but that their real life activities don't point towards being gay. He tells ABC News:
If he is not actually attracted to people of the same sex, does not masturbate to fantasies of people of the same sex, is not really aroused by same sex pornography, then it is hard to make the case that he has a homosexual orientation.
He says one of these straight dudes who mistakenly think he's gay might spend all day online looking at gay porn sites, obsessively wondering if he's gay, but not deriving any pleasure out of it. He says:
They know they're not attracted to the same sex and are to the opposite sex, but are consumed all day long with this battle. They can think of nothing else. A gay person doesn't go through this battle.
A gay person doesn't go through this battle?! Really?!
I think plenty of gay people do battle their attractions — also some other people are simply confused and probably mostly attracted to one sex but slightly attracted and intrigued by the other. But then maybe the good doc is right. Maybe there are some genuinely heterosexual people who are, for some reason, consumed with wondering whether he/she is gay.
I do have a friend who claims to have frequent sexual thoughts about the same sex — but swears up and down he is straight. I've seen enough of this man's behavior to truly believe he is attracted to women. But I've always thought he was probably bi and wouldn't admit it.
But maybe he's gay OCD?
Have you heard of this? Do you buy it?
Image via laura dye/Flickr
