There are five main forms of attraction that most people experience, not everyone experiences all of them (i.e. Aromantic and asexual people) but the vast majority does. Below is an explanation of each type of attraction and some examples to help you better understand them.
Aesthetic ~
Aesthetic attraction is the appreciation of someone's perceived beauty, or pretty much just how something looks. This can literally be anything, it can be simple as thinking 'Wow! That's a nice cactus!' Or something like 'That's a really nice haircut on them.'
Aesthetic attraction is more the appreciation of beauty however a person thinks of it. It's not inherently sexual or romantic (though it can be in some instances) but simply appreciating. Everyone at some point or another experiences aesthetic attraction, whether they see someone on the street find them beautiful or simply enjoy the looks of a flower, it's all aesthetic.
For those who experience little to no sexual attraction, aesthetic is heavily relied on. They pick people they find beautiful instead of 'sexy'.
Quick recap ~ beauty and all that junk
Platonic ~
Friendship! I'm pretty sure everyone feels platonic attraction at some point! We all have friends, and people we like to be around, albeit some people have more platonic connections than others, but we all have them. Platonic attraction includes friends, and family members that you enjoy being around but not in a sexual or romantic way. This is somewhat of a difficult term to identify but it's pretty much just not the other four!
Quick recap ~ Friendship!
Romantic ~
This is one of the big ones. It's pretty much the desire to be in a relationship with someone. Desiring a deeper connection to them than just platonic. Some of us fall in love ten times a day, while others never fall in love romantically with anyone! And that's completely fine! Attraction like this is very hard to explain unless you are currently feeling it. It's very close to sensual attraction as its a desire to be near someone but it also includes aesthetic attraction as well. You are less likely to be romantically interested in someone if you don't find them attractive or if you don't like them on a platonic level. Romantic attraction is weird af and if you don't understand it already, you probably never will! (Not to be a downer or anything, just being honest!)
Quick recap ~ Watching movies together and being cool when someone farts. Also you probably think the other person is really pretty.
Sensual ~
Oooooh this one sounds the most fancy, right? Or is that just me? Well, either way, sensual attraction is the desire to be near them, to have physical contact with them, or just smell them (if you're into that kind of thing). It's more of a sensory kind of attraction. It's not often very sexual, but is usually romantic or platonic. Most people who really feel this, in my experience are those with sensory issues, or people who rely heavily on things like sounds, smells, and touch. This can be mistaken for romantic or sexual attraction. Many asexual people confuse sensual and sexual attraction as they can't feel one of them.
Quick recap ~ Dang your skin is soft and I would very much like to cuddle.
Sexual ~
Here's the deal-io, me the writer, the nerd behind the screen, is in fact, asexual. And because of this, I've decided not to write a definition for sexual attraction, and would love if one of you would send me the definition! Message me it and I might use yours!
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LGBT stuffs (advice, problems, glossary of terms, and relatable things)
Non-Fiction***SUPER IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER***this book is currently being edited and was written by my fetus self so there's a lot of work I have to do to fix it, so read at your own risk*** You know when you're like super gay but nobody knows you're super gay...
