Anonymous wrote:LGBT. Not sure why you’re dropping the T. That’s pretty standard, or LGBTQ.
The LGBT pins aren’t repelling anyone. If anything, they’d be a signal to people who are part of that community that she is too, at least as an ally, and it makes her approachable. The only people it would signal to stay away is straight women, but they likely would anyway, being straight women. So don’t worry about that.
Some people are asexual. It’s just not a big deal. Sexuality is fluid, and definitely could change during her life. Or it might now. The exploration she did as a young teen could have just been her way of confirming that she’s not interested in sex rather than a way of expressing interest.
Asexual is different from aromantic. Asexual doesn’t necessarily mean she won’t have intimate relationships or a family some day. Of course, she could be asexual and aromantic. It doesn’t mean unhappy or lonely, it just means uninterested in romance and sex.
If she’s depressed, keep treating the depression. It could be related to her sexuality. When that happens, it tends to come from fears of rejection or not fitting in, rather than being unhappy with who they are as a person. Or it could just be depression unrelated to sexuality. But a doctor is better situated to handle that distinction.
If she’s a loner, it’s probably because she’s an introvert, not because she’s asexual. Most of our relationships with other people aren’t sexual.
NP here. I think you misunderstood “repellant”. You are right that LGBT positive pins are unlikely to repel people, but OP’s child is wearing a pin that literally says “repellant” because she does not want people to be into her.
OP, IME with the queer community which I am part of, I’ve met a lot of young people who identify as asexual but I suspect many of them are not truly so.
Every one of them has presented with signs of social anxiety and maybe a lack of resilience.
Instead of putting themselves out there and risking “failure” or rejection, they’d rather avoid any kind of intimacy or attempt at intimacy.
Some of them have internalized homophobia. But the social anxiety is near universal.
There are some people who are truly asexual, but for someone this young, I would focus on working on social anxiety, fear of failure/rejection, but really not make too big a deal about identifying any particular way.