Gray-A/Grey-A
In standard parlance, hyposexual person has a below average sex drive and may or may not identify as asexual. Some hyposexuals have naturally low sex drives throughout their lives, whereas some people experience a drop in sex drive later in life. Stress, illness or certain medications can also cause a loss or reduction of sex drive. In medical terminology, hyposexuality is considered a form of sexual dysfunction. Within the asexual community, the consensus is that hyposexuality is not a disorder unless a hyposexual person is dissatisfied with their sex drive.
On AVEN, "hyposexual" - along with similar terms such as "demisexual" and "gray-A" - is sometimes used to refer, not to sex drive specifically, but to anyone who feels that they are in a gray or ambiguous area between standard sexuality and asexuality. This includes people with a below average sex drive, but can also include:
- people who are technically sexual, but feel that it's not an important part of their lives and don't identify with standard sexual culture
- people who experience sexual attraction and drive, but not strongly enough to want to act on them
- people who can enjoy and desire sex, but only under very limited and specific circumstances
- people who experience some parts of sexuality but not others, according to a theoretical model such as Rabger's
Other terms for the gray area include "semisexual", "pseudosexual", "low-key sexual", "soft sexual", and "gentle sexual".
