Struggling with "labelling" myself
So for context, I'm a woman in my 50s, and I originally dated men, then both men and women, now I'm pretty sure I'm exclusively interested in women. And I'm a pretty private person in general, so although I do come across as warm and friendly, I don't really open up until I get to know a person.
Anyway, after reading a heap of stuff both here and online generally, in order to understand myself better and kinda where I fit in relation to other lesbians, I find myself feeling really uncomfortable with the whole idea of "labelling" (if that's the right word) myself as, for example, a femme/masc, a top/bottom/switch, etc. And I don't know if that's because:
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I'm still fairly inexperienced, so maybe I just don't actually know yet which labels fit me comfortably; or
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of some kind of internalised homophobia that's making me resistant about proudly identifying with any of those kind of labels; or
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I just actually don't like the feeling of being labelled/"pigeon-holed" that way in any context - I mean I can't think of any other context of my relationship/sex life where I would kinda announce to anyone that I identify in any particular way like that - normally things kind of unfold organically and we discuss as we go, rather than kinda "announcing" upfront that I'm a this or a that like I have seen a lot of people do.
And just to be clear, I am absolutely NOT knocking anyone doing that if they feel some term is a good fit for them - I'm just saying that I don't feel that way and I'm wondering if that means there's something kinda wrong with me.
Does that make any sense?
Posted Jul 11, 2026, 1:08 PM UTC