Difference Between Celibacy and Abstinence

Sex might be something that is natural and pleasurable, but not everyone is ready to be sexually active. There are different terms that are used to explain when you choose to not be sexually active. Two of the most common terms for people that are not having sex are abstinence and celibacy, but it is important to know how these terms are different from one another. This means that you need to take a closer look at what each term means and then compare the two. Here is a closer look at the differences between Abstinence and celibacy.

What is Abstinence?

Abstinence is defined as the absence of sexual intercourse from your life. It is often talked about along with condoms as a form of birth control that you can use. This means that if you are looking to not get pregnant it can be a good idea to refrain from sex and to abstain. Even though abstinence is pushed as a form of birth control it is not always realistic to assume that teenagers will abstain from sex. Many teenagers become sexually active at a young age. This is also a term that is used to describe people that have never had sex before. This means that if you have not been sexually active in the past and if you are not currently engaging in sexual activity, you are abstaining.

Celibacy and Sex

Many people confuse abstinence with celibacy because the two terms are similar. Celibacy involves avoiding all forms of sexual activity. Most people that become celibate have a reason other than age that is keeping them from wanting to have sex. They might chose to be celibate for religous reasons or are looking to make a big change in their life and want to be celibate during this time period. When you are celibate, you normally have had sexual activity in the past but you are choosing to do no longer do so for a certain time period. This means that abstinence and celibacy are not one in the same. Even though both terms generally mean that you are not currently having sex, they are though of as completely different terms that describe different types of refraining from sex. This means that those that are abstaining from sex would not necessarily describe themselves as celibate even though technically this would be true. It is important to note what the differences are in the two.

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