What should you do if you have a weird paraphilia?
Weird is a very hard thing to define. What is weird to one set
of people is normal to another and vice-versa. The real issue is
whether or not the paraphilia is harmful to oneself or to others.
Some paraphilias are both harmful and illegal; such as pedophilia
(sexual interest in children), bestiality (sexual activity with
animals [not illegal everywhere]) and frotteurism (non-consensual
groping of strangers). Engaging in, or being aroused by,
paraphilias such as these requires the intervention of mental
health professionals and in some cases law enforcement. Other
paraphilias whilst possibly strange to the majority of people are
not illegal and not neccessarily harmful. Coprophilia (sexual
desire from play with excrement [poo]) is a major example. Whilst
it may be distasteful to the majority of people, it is really up to
the individual whether or not they engage in consensual
coprophiliac sex-play. Many paraphilias are not considered
particularly weird either. An example might include
katoptronophilia (sex play in front of mirrors). Once again it is
up to you. The late Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau is often
quoted with regard to what other adults do behind their closed
doors; he said that "there is no place for the state in the
bedrooms of the nation." This could be extended to also include
that other people's opinions have no place in your bedroom.
_________________________ This writer, having dealt with great
numbers of people suffering from diseases that are transmitted
fecally, such as hepatitis and a variety of parasitic diseases, has
to disagree emphatically with the comment about coprophilia --
while still agreeing overall with the remarks in general.
