Objectum Sexuality

[Jazzy]

Objectum sexuality is an unusual psychological phenomenon in which an individual feels powerful affection toward a particular inanimate object – for all intents and purposes falling ‘in love’ with the object which may be a particular table, a train or a door.

In objectum sexuality the emphasis is not in fact on ‘sexuality’ at all (thus it is distinct from fetishism) as while the individual may be sexually attracted to the object, they also have strong feelings of love and commitment toward it. Generally those suffering with objectum sexuality believe the object to hold reciprocal feelings and to love them back, while in some extreme cases they may also find it difficult to understand ‘normal’ relationships between humans. Objectum sexuality can also be referred to as ‘object sexuality’ and those who experience the feelings may be referred to as ‘objectophiles’ or ‘OS people’.

The causes and mechanisms of objectum sexuality are not currently fully understood, but many existing insights of psychology may be used in order to explain the phenomenon, while some consistencies can also be noted between OS people.

In the popular documentary ‘Strange Love: Married to the Eiffel Tower’, two OS people are interviewed and filmed going about their daily lives. They are Erika La Tour Eiffel – who legally changed her name after ‘marrying’ the Eiffel tower, and ‘Amy Wolf’. Both women are Aspergic and both suffered a history of abuse.

Asperger’s syndrome is a mild form of autism, a developmental disorder that damages communication, emotion and the ability to empathize. This combination makes it difficult for sufferers to form emotional attachments or to understand the behavior of others – thus it seems like an appropriate fit that they may be more prone to developing objectum sexuality.

A psychodynamic explanation of objectum sexuality meanwhile might focus on defense mechanisms such as projection. Here the individual may have strong sexual or emotional feelings that they find difficult to come to terms with – perhaps through fear of becoming vulnerable to another person, or perhaps because the object of their affections is deemed inappropriate. As a result the unconscious mind attempts to protect the conscious part of the psyche from the reality by directing that love toward a harmless and ‘safe’ inanimate object.

Thoughts?

 

[Dee]

Reminds me of the guy who was sexually attracted to his car on that show My Strange Addiction. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0S642NtHtE

 

[DrLeftover]

And then there is this:

This week a serious issue has come to the attention of Fashion Statement. It's an age-old problem that seemingly remains unaffected by economic meltdown or climate change. What could we be talking about? Why, "shoe addiction" of course.

First of all let's reel off some impressive stats ... Did you know that blonde warbler Christina Aguilera has 750 pairs of shoes in her walk-in wardrobe? Or that style barometer Paris Hilton (yes, we are being sarcastic) has lost count of how many she owns and believes it to be somewhere in the region of 2,000? And let's not forget the infamous Imelda Marcos, who - when she wasn't sending planes from Manila to Australia to pick up some sand - was buying designer footwear: more than 1,000 pairs, according to Time magazine.

It turns out, though, that the most shocking celebrity shoe-gatherer of all is someone we've not thought of since 1993, when battered copies of her towering literary achievements were surreptitiously passed around the playground. Yes, it's only Danielle Steel, teenage Fashion Statement's favourite author (purely for the sexy bits), who owns 6,000 pairs of Louboutins. That's a lot of shoes for a woman who we're sure spends all of her time at her keyboard.

http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2010/apr/15/shoe-addiction-cure


They're wrong about Imelda Marcos, she had 1,600 pairs by her own count.