Making the news lately is a condition called object sexuality. We’ve all heard someone say how much they love a car or a piece of art or something else. For some, their logic is misguided and they actually feel romantic or sexual attraction to an inanimate object. They become obsessed with the object and, in some cases, believe it returns their feelings.
Montare Behavioral Health understands how challenging objectophilia is, and we offer a program that helps people come to terms with their disorder. We provide structured care from compassionate mental health experts who make the individual feel safe opening up and talking about how they feel. Our skilled staff guides the person through different kinds of therapy that help them develop a more realistic way of seeing inanimate objects.
What is Object Sexuality?
Object sexuality, also known as objectum sexuality or objectophilia, refers to the act of developing strong romantic and sexual attractions to inanimate objects, whether concrete or abstract, rather than to people. Individuals with this condition may fall in love, in their own way, with things like a car, a painting, a bridge, a statue, or even a word. They experience deep emotional connections and a sense of commitment to these objects, similar to the way others might feel about a person.
Many people with object sexuality do not form attractions to humans, instead focusing their affection exclusively on the object of their love. Some go as far as to believe the object reciprocates their feelings, attributing to it a soul or the ability to feel emotions.
Is Object Sexuality a Mental Health Disorder?
Objectophilia is sometimes classified as a mental health disorder, while others feel it’s a sexual fetish. Psychology Today reports that the disorder is not a fetish because fetishists use their items of choice, like feet, solely for sexual gratification. While someone with object sexuality may feel carnal attraction, they also can experience feelings of deep love. Some professionals believe that object sexuality is a sexual orientation, but the jury is still out on how to classify it. However, the condition may occur alongside mental health disorders like depression, anxiety, or bipolar disorder. Receiving treatment for those illnesses can also have an impact on reducing the desires and behaviors related to objectophilia.
Why Do People Fall In Love with Inanimate Objects?
The idea of someone falling in love with or being attracted to inanimate objects confuses most people. Their first question is why does it happen? Most people are born with this condition or develop it at an early age.
Because object sexuality is so uncommon, studies continue to help treatment experts understand its source. As of now, the most common determining factor present for someone who has objectophilia is the presence of autism. In fact, people with this disorder have a higher incidence of autism, as well as stronger autistic traits than others have.
People with object sexuality also have a higher incidence of having synesthesia, which is a neurological disorder that causes information that would typically stimulate one of a person’s senses to instead stimulate several of them.
Challenges for Someone With Objectophelia
The first widely reported case of objectophilia was in 1979, when a Swedish woman “married” the Berlin Wall, In 2007, another woman “married” the Eiffel Tower. In both cases, the women received a lot of attention in the media, and most people assumed they were mentally ill or attention-seeking.
Even those who struggle with object sexuality outside of the media’s eye also suffer from embarrassment and judgment. Typically, their feelings for the object prove so strong that they discuss them with family members, friends, and others. This often creates a reputation for them that they are weird or crazy and makes it difficult for the person to sustain these relationships with people.
As well, having object sexuality usually precludes the person from having a genuine and meaningful relationship with a human. They miss out on the give-and-take of loving a person that most people enjoy.
Can Object Sexuality be Treated?
While there isn’t one specific treatment designed just to help people with object sexuality, many benefit from attending counseling. Individual and group therapy can help the person understand how to identify and minimize their compulsive feelings. This helps them modify their emotions and fixations. Prescription medications can also offer effective aid in the treatment of objectophilia because they help reduce the pattern of compulsive thoughts and behaviors. Anyone getting treatment for object sexuality will find the most success if they attend their therapy sessions and take their medications regularly.
Contact Montare Behavioral Health for Treatment Today
Do you know someone who falls in love with objects rather than people and even expresses sexual curiosity about them? If so, they may be struggling with object sexuality. This is a tricky disorder to understand, but our mental health experts at Montare Behavioral Health can guide someone so they understand how unrealistic their condition is. We provide multiple types of therapy modalities that help a person reframe how they think about inanimate objects and minimize their symptoms of objectophilia.
Do you have questions about how our program works? Contact us today and let us answer your questions. Getting help is just a phone call away.
