Acespike
Acespike is an asexual-spectrum identity describing someone who usually experiences little or no sexual attraction but occasionally experiences sudden, relatively intense periods of sexual attraction before returning to their usual ace baseline. These spikes are generally temporary and may occur rarely or unpredictably.
Acespike is specifically about sexual attraction. It does not simply mean that someone:
- Has a temporary increase in libido or sex drive.
- Becomes physically aroused.
- Enjoys sex when they have it.
- Temporarily feels more open to sex or less sex-averse.
- Experiences desire after sexual activity or stimulation begins.
Someone can experience any of these things and still feel little or no sexual attraction. For an acespike person, the defining feature is that sexual attraction itself occasionally appears or becomes noticeably stronger for a short period before returning to their usual ace baseline.
Acespike can be a sexual orientation on its own or can be combined with other orientations. For example, a person can be acespike and straight or gay.
Origins of the Term
The exact origin of acespike is unclear, but the term was circulating in online asexual communities by 2015. An acespike pride flag appeared on Tumblr by August 2015, and the term was being discussed on the Asexual Visibility and Education Network (AVEN) around the same time. Early discussions linked acespike with concepts such as graysexuality and aceflux, using “spike” to describe brief, sudden periods of sexual attraction against an otherwise asexual baseline. The person who originally coined the term is unknown.
Related Terms
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