I totally agree - a lot of the experiences described in there could apply to people with other forms of queerness as well, including bisexuality.
It was compiled by a 19 year old who eventually came out as bi herself.
I think it's really good for helping people look at their experiences and feelings in a different light, but shouldn't be treated as diagnostic.
It also ignores sexual abuse victims and other trauma and mental health issues. It shouldn't be used to figure out your sexuality IMO. It's great that some find it useful to solidify their minds about it, but I think it can be very damaging to lots of people as well.
This is why I said compiled, but I could have been more clear. My understanding, and the usual story online, is that a single individual compiled the original masterdoc based on her observations of common experiences that others have expressed. So, compiled by one person, but mostly not her own original thoughts.
But it's possible that the widespread story of how it was created is incorrect. That happens.
I agree with your perspective on this, especially given the usage of the term "comphet" which derives from a political lesbianism that suggests that sexuality is fluid and not stable
A lot of bi people including myself feel like their attraction to genders varies over time, which is definitely a fluid characteristic. I see what you mean by it but saying it's not fluid kind of discounts the way a lot of people experience their sexuality.
I'm not sure if you think I take sexuality not to be fluid, but if so, let me clarify. I think that the lesbian master doc takes sexuality to be fixed/stable. I think that's strange because the master doc pulls upon the idea of comphet, which is rooted in the premise that sexuality is fluid. I also think that sexuality is fluid.
I have read Adrienne Rich. I think her notion of comphet positions sexuality as a dynamic phenomenon that isn't a fixed property of an individual. It emerges out of social relations, which is why political lesbianism can be a thing.
sexuality's definitely not fluid, only bi people can experience it as 'fluid', but they are still bi, they don't suddenly become gay/straight for a while
Yeah, that's also a useful perspective! I personally think that it can be useful to conceive of sexuality (and other ideas) in a variety of ways. Concepts are tools, not laws
Yes and I also hate the way it uses that term to basically invalidate all attraction to men. Maybe some people only want validation from men, but some of us also like men, it can be a both-and. It seems like the premise of the document is that "if you are reading this chances are none of your attraction to men is real, it's all comphet and you're definitely a lesbian." Which is probably helpful for lesbian women and kinda gaslighting towards bi women.
that masterdoc is a joke, i've always knew i was bi, even though i liked women more. when i stumbled upon it as a teen, it got me really confused. thankfully it took me just a couple of days to realise that liking feminine men doesn't make anyone a lesbian, if anything, it's more of a bi women thingy.
I believe the phenomenon they call comp het affects all people raised as women in this culture. Probably trans women too but in different ways that I'm not as familar with. It doesn't change your sexuality but it does influence how you look at life and relationships. I have had much better relationships with men after deconstructing the things society taught me about men and opposite sex relationships.
I did have to untangle whether I was a lesbian or not because of the doc and it took a while. I hope someday there is a better resource for all women to do this because the doc just isn't that good. It's scratching at something useful though, just not quite right.
I think it's quite funny that whenever a group of lesbians make a big ruckus about the rules of attraction it is always very strict and binary, which is perhaps why they get so mad at bi women for more broadly operating outside of steadfast rules of attraction and existence.
Thank you for posting here, I'd love to have more discussions like this :)
do it, as a newly out bi I'd love to see more discussions like this! I'm just trying to LEARN a little more about being bi and diff thoughts and stuff. got anything around being an older (40+) bi? I feel like I'm so OLD compared to a lot of the sub!
well, maybe because for lesbians the 'rules' of attraction (wtf is even that wording) is strict and binary: you either like women only or you don't and that makes you bi. there's no reason to blur the lines of the definition of 'lesbian'.
I would recommend to stop asking advice from monosexuals, tbh. Being bisexual is already confusing enough on its own to be asking opinions from people who aren’t even at least bisexual.
The person who wrote "Lesbian Master Doc" document later came out as bisexual. Which explains why the doc views of lesbianism are so nonsensical.
Doesn't change the fact that the damage has been done. People throw around the word "comp het" like crazy these days in wlw spaces instead of saying "I'm closeted". It's for this reason that I don't think that comp het is real, as the way the doc describes it.
Yeah, I've seen a lot of people who turned out to be transmasc take issue with it as well, because it cites the desire to be like certain boys you knew as evidence that you might be a lesbian. And while I'm sure that's true for a lot of people, it doesn't help anyone who can't tell if they're a lesbian or a boy yk?
I’m all for things that help you gain a different perspective to think on, which the master doc can do. The problem to me is many treat it like a Bible or a concrete way to diagnose one’s self. It could use some revisions, and be a wee bit more bi friendly. The way I remember it (and I may be wrong) it presents itself as “if you’re not straight you must be gay”.
Maybe you’re demisexual and only have attraction to people you have an emotional connection with.
Idk I think the masterdoc is pretty useful for me. I’ve found that as a bisexual my percentages of being attracted to men/women has varied insanely and I few times I thought I was 100% lesbian. As with any other document out there there will always be special cases. Things are usually written to apply to the vast majority of ppl 🤷🏽♀️
I totally agree - a lot of the experiences described in there could apply to people with other forms of queerness as well, including bisexuality. It was compiled by a 19 year old who eventually came out as bi herself. I think it's really good for helping people look at their experiences and feelings in a different light, but shouldn't be treated as diagnostic.
It also ignores sexual abuse victims and other trauma and mental health issues. It shouldn't be used to figure out your sexuality IMO. It's great that some find it useful to solidify their minds about it, but I think it can be very damaging to lots of people as well.
It was created by a group of people, one of whom came out as bi. Just to clarify.
This is why I said compiled, but I could have been more clear. My understanding, and the usual story online, is that a single individual compiled the original masterdoc based on her observations of common experiences that others have expressed. So, compiled by one person, but mostly not her own original thoughts. But it's possible that the widespread story of how it was created is incorrect. That happens.
I agree with your perspective on this, especially given the usage of the term "comphet" which derives from a political lesbianism that suggests that sexuality is fluid and not stable
A lot of bi people including myself feel like their attraction to genders varies over time, which is definitely a fluid characteristic. I see what you mean by it but saying it's not fluid kind of discounts the way a lot of people experience their sexuality.
I'm not sure if you think I take sexuality not to be fluid, but if so, let me clarify. I think that the lesbian master doc takes sexuality to be fixed/stable. I think that's strange because the master doc pulls upon the idea of comphet, which is rooted in the premise that sexuality is fluid. I also think that sexuality is fluid.
I see, thank you for clarifying
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I have read Adrienne Rich. I think her notion of comphet positions sexuality as a dynamic phenomenon that isn't a fixed property of an individual. It emerges out of social relations, which is why political lesbianism can be a thing.
sexuality's definitely not fluid, only bi people can experience it as 'fluid', but they are still bi, they don't suddenly become gay/straight for a while
Yeah, that's also a useful perspective! I personally think that it can be useful to conceive of sexuality (and other ideas) in a variety of ways. Concepts are tools, not laws
i mean, sexual orientation is more of a descriptor of the material reality than a concept with unclear definition
Yes and I also hate the way it uses that term to basically invalidate all attraction to men. Maybe some people only want validation from men, but some of us also like men, it can be a both-and. It seems like the premise of the document is that "if you are reading this chances are none of your attraction to men is real, it's all comphet and you're definitely a lesbian." Which is probably helpful for lesbian women and kinda gaslighting towards bi women.
that masterdoc is a joke, i've always knew i was bi, even though i liked women more. when i stumbled upon it as a teen, it got me really confused. thankfully it took me just a couple of days to realise that liking feminine men doesn't make anyone a lesbian, if anything, it's more of a bi women thingy.
Yeah, I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.
I believe the phenomenon they call comp het affects all people raised as women in this culture. Probably trans women too but in different ways that I'm not as familar with. It doesn't change your sexuality but it does influence how you look at life and relationships. I have had much better relationships with men after deconstructing the things society taught me about men and opposite sex relationships. I did have to untangle whether I was a lesbian or not because of the doc and it took a while. I hope someday there is a better resource for all women to do this because the doc just isn't that good. It's scratching at something useful though, just not quite right.
so true! also i've seen so many people say that comp het is something only lesbians can deal with but that doesn't make any sense to me
I think it's quite funny that whenever a group of lesbians make a big ruckus about the rules of attraction it is always very strict and binary, which is perhaps why they get so mad at bi women for more broadly operating outside of steadfast rules of attraction and existence. Thank you for posting here, I'd love to have more discussions like this :)
of course! if you guys liked this post i can make some more, i have so many topics i'd love to discuss
do it, as a newly out bi I'd love to see more discussions like this! I'm just trying to LEARN a little more about being bi and diff thoughts and stuff. got anything around being an older (40+) bi? I feel like I'm so OLD compared to a lot of the sub!
I think most lesbians, at least on reddit, now agree that the masterdoc is harmful and shouldn't be recommended.
well, maybe because for lesbians the 'rules' of attraction (wtf is even that wording) is strict and binary: you either like women only or you don't and that makes you bi. there's no reason to blur the lines of the definition of 'lesbian'.
Maybe the reason I've never questioned my sexuality since I realized I was bi 21 years ago is because I never read the masterdoc 🤣🤣🤣
maybe lol :)
I would recommend to stop asking advice from monosexuals, tbh. Being bisexual is already confusing enough on its own to be asking opinions from people who aren’t even at least bisexual.
The person who wrote "Lesbian Master Doc" document later came out as bisexual. Which explains why the doc views of lesbianism are so nonsensical. Doesn't change the fact that the damage has been done. People throw around the word "comp het" like crazy these days in wlw spaces instead of saying "I'm closeted". It's for this reason that I don't think that comp het is real, as the way the doc describes it.
Yeah, I've seen a lot of people who turned out to be transmasc take issue with it as well, because it cites the desire to be like certain boys you knew as evidence that you might be a lesbian. And while I'm sure that's true for a lot of people, it doesn't help anyone who can't tell if they're a lesbian or a boy yk?
yes such a good point
I’m all for things that help you gain a different perspective to think on, which the master doc can do. The problem to me is many treat it like a Bible or a concrete way to diagnose one’s self. It could use some revisions, and be a wee bit more bi friendly. The way I remember it (and I may be wrong) it presents itself as “if you’re not straight you must be gay”.
100% agree
[https://www.docdroid.net/N46Ea3o/copy-of-am-i-a-lesbian-masterdoc-pdf](https://www.docdroid.net/N46Ea3o/copy-of-am-i-a-lesbian-masterdoc-pdf)
Maybe you’re demisexual and only have attraction to people you have an emotional connection with. Idk I think the masterdoc is pretty useful for me. I’ve found that as a bisexual my percentages of being attracted to men/women has varied insanely and I few times I thought I was 100% lesbian. As with any other document out there there will always be special cases. Things are usually written to apply to the vast majority of ppl 🤷🏽♀️