Personal Response on Sexual Identity

I am guided by the pursuit of pleasure because I prefer to do what feels right rather than what is best. I answer to my gut feeling or listen to my heart if you will. Was raised to do what Is best for me and not for anyone else, and have also taught myself never regret anything that I do but learn and grow from my mistakes. I also relate to the value rationalism, which may seem like I contradict myself but sometimes I do stop and think about the consequences before I act instead of living in the moment. In my past, I have made some terrible mistakes and has made me want to be more cautious about certain situations I come across.I believe that I will always relate to these values. Critical Thinking and Sexual Decision Making People may not know that they use critical thinking every time they make a sexual decision, but I know how Important It Is to think a sexual decision through before making a decision. I would consider myself a skeptic even after this class. Being a skeptic means t hat I have to question anything related to sexual activities. I find it important to think about the consequences before making a decision because I can avoid making mistakes.A time that I had to use critical thinking was when I was deciding whether to lose my virginity or not. That decision was not something that I could choose right away but would take me a while to think about the consequences. It was my decision ultimately to make, and no one could help me decide. Critical thinking is a must anytime you are about to make a life-altering decision. Gender Identity Gender identity is the belief in which you truly are. Before we are born we are given a sex assignment, based on the internal and external organs we have in the womb.As e grow up, we learn whom we are and determine which gender we agree with. Most of the time we identify with the gender we were assigned with when In the womb or after birth. There are times that Individuals choose the opposite gender than the one they wer e assigned. Factors that help determine gender identity is genetic factors, social factors and environmental factors. Between man and woman, 23 chromosomes are combined to make up the genetic code. The egg carriers the X sex chromosome and the sperm can carry either the X or Y sex chromosome. This is the sex assignment and usually the gender most people identify as.Social factors help they raised you as a boy, you would most likely identify yourself as a boy. Also, your peers can have an effect on how you determine your gender identity. If one wants to fit in, he or she may try to identify as the gender that their peers are. Environmental factors can help determine your gender identity by naturally shaping you into whom you believe you are. People go through many situations that can have an effect on your gender identify. The factors that have affected my gender identity are genetic factors, environmental factors and social factors.At birth, it was determined that I m a girl because of my internal and external organs I have. Social and environmental factors determined my gender identity because my parents raised me based on my sex assignment. My parents and our society taught me that there was only one way. Which technically meant that I had no say in my gender identity since I was born as a girl I was to remain a girl. The factor that most helps me to determine my gender identity was the social factor of my parents raising me as I was meant to be. Masculinity and Femininity On the continuum of masculinity-femininity, I fall close to the middle but closer to Minnie.I like to get dressed up and be â€Å"girl' with makeup and purses, but I also like to hang with the guys and watch football and drink a beer. I would not say I am masculine in any way, but I do have masculine tendencies because I'm not afraid to get dirty. I grew up with both parents so I would say they balanced my feminine and masculine qualities. They taught me the important parts of being femin ine and masculinity. My mother taught me to act like a lady, and my father taught me how to change a tire. Attraction There are three components of attractiveness; they are attitude, physical attraction ND reciprocity.The first thing someone notices about another person is his or her physical appearance. What makes a person want to further the relationship is his or her attitude. If they find the attitude to be attractive, chances are they will try to further the relationship. Reciprocity is when both parties want the same thing and will work together to make their relationship a lasting one. The factor that is most important to me would be an attitude because while physical attraction is the first thing I notice, attitude is the component that makes me want to act on my feelings.If someone does not have a good attitude or a similar attitude as mine, I will not find him or her attractive. Styles of Love The styles of love that are constant in my life right now are romantic love, pos sessive excited love and friendship. Romantic love has always been a constant in my life because I am a lover. When I fall in love, I fall hard. Romantic love is probably the truest love today. Possessive excited love is a style of love that I find in my life today. Although my boyfriend and I are not possessive, we have a lot of excitement in our relationship.The excitement to see each other after a long day of work or the excitement to have a date night keeps our relationship strong. Before my boyfriend and I decided to be in a relationship, we were really great friends. We bonded instantly and got along very well. When I started to feel like being friends was not enough for me, I had to let him know. Historical and Scientific Perspectives on Homosexuality Homosexuality is when an individual is attracted sexually or romantically to people of in our society we have people who protest against gays having equal rights such as arraign.Of course, our society has come a long way with he terosexuals fighting along side the homosexuals for the their rights. Historical and scientific perspectives have shaped the way I perceive my sexual orientation and myself. Historically, homosexual practices were either done in secret or known about but shunned. Homosexuals were looked down on and seen as abominations. In the past individuals who were accused of homosexuality were convicted by the â€Å"Office of the Night†, which was a group of Christians who felt negatively on homosexuals.In today's society, homosexuals do not have to hide that they are gay because they can not be convicted for whom they are. Unfortunately, there are still individuals out there that do not agree with homosexuality. There is still the potential of gay individuals being harassed by those individuals. Hate crimes are still common in our society. I am not gay, but I do have gay friends and family, and I do not look at them any differently; instead I stand beside them and protect them from any hate that comes their way. History has only taught me that we need to fight for the rights and that I need to be true to myself.Scientific perspectives have researched the possibility of genetics and mental health being the cause of homosexuality. They have studied family trees to determine if homosexuality can be passed down through generations. They only found that the X chromosome could influence sexual orientation. The researchers have also studied the brain and the possibility that homosexuality can be caused by a mental illness of some sort. Scientific perspectives have not reflected on my sexual orientation. I am straight because I choose to be.I believe that anyone should be able to love whoever they want without being Judged for it. Abortion When I was younger I always thought abortion was wrong because it was taking a life of a baby. As I grew up and learned more, I realized I was making my decision on abortion based off of others ideas of abortion. I became aware of abort ion when a friend of mine in high school had an abortion after having sex once. I understood why she would want an abortion because of being in high school and she had her whole life ahead of her. Her family was very strict, and she was worried about her parents disowning her.