Hi anon! :D It's understandable that you're confused, since many people just say aro means no romantic attraction. However, things are more complicated than that.

Aromanticism means atypical or no romantic attraction. Aro includes people who don't experience romantic attraction at all, and it includes people (like me) who experience it in unusual ways.

The term "romo aro" can include any aro who experiences romantic attraction or desires a romantic relationship. Not all of us use it, but many find it fits well. I don't know if you know of any aro microidentities, but a few of the more commonly-used ones that fall into this are demiromantic, grayromantic, and cupioromantic.

If you do know of these identities already, you might be going "but wait! Demi and gray romantic are arospec, not aro!"

They are arospec identities. The microidentities that mean no romantic attraction are also arospec identities. All of it is arospec. If you want to read about this further, here's the post where I first read about the term romo aro.

Also, here's a definition of the term. Either linked post will probably be more helpful than my rambling. Looking through @romo-aro-culture-is could also be helpful, especially if you're trying to figure out whether you're romo aro.

I'm romo aro because I'm duraromantic, which for me means I have gotten two (2) crushes in my life and am not over either of them. The first one was when I was thirteen and I can think about him semi-calmly, the second one was less than two years ago and everytime I so much as think about her I get a ridiculous grin. I am holding back said ridiculous grin right now typing this. I could start rambling about how amazing this girl I barely know and haven't seen or talked to in well over a year is, but I will spare you.

Anyway. Technically duraromanticism is a subtype of grayromanticism, but because of how intensely I experience romantic attraction and how large the percentage of the time that I experience it is, I don't feel that grayromantic really fits me.

Romo aro does. I'm aromantic- I don't see romantic relationships as more important than other kinds. I don't see relationships as inherently hierarchical. I don't understand why people stay in romantic relationships they don't like or that aren't healthy. So far as I can tell allos usually differ from me on at least most of those counts.

But I'm also romantic. I don't get crushes often, but when I do my brain is next to useless if they so much as look at me. If they talk to me, well. Good luck getting me to speak in complete sentences. Also I can't flirt someone teach me to flirt there is very little chance I will see either of them ever again but if I do I want to be PREPARED instead of sounding like an idiot AGAIN so help me-

anyway. Enough rambling! The point is, romo aro! It's a great term! I'm glad it exists!

because

I

miss

him

SO

MUCH