At the time of writing, fictophilia is not recognized or proposed as a specific diagnostic condition by the World Health Organization (ICD-11) or the American Psychiatric Association (DSM-5) (but see 'paraphilia' in both manuals).
Meaning it is a response to how things seem. Sometimes characters and stories are so well written, so believable and relatable to our own lives, that they could be real people. It may seem funny but some people rely on these people as comfort characters. It is completely normal!
Fictosexuality, fictoromance, and fictophilia are terms that have recently become popular in online environments as indicators of strong and lasting feelings of love, infatuation, or desire for one or more fictional characters.
Falling in love with a fictional character is nothing out of the ordinary, and many people have found themselves emotionally attached to a character in a book, movie, TV show, or video game.
Flag. The black and grey stripes represent the lack of attraction towards non-fictional individuals, the purple stripe represents sexual attraction and the asexual spectrum, the black circle represents a "portal" to the fictional world in question, and the pink represents attraction to fictional characters.
An unhealthy attachment to fictional characters can negatively affect an individual's mental health, relationships, and social life. It can lead to feelings of loneliness, isolation, and a distorted perception of reality.
Fictosexuality is a sexual attraction towards fictional characters. Though not all fictosexuals identify themselves as gray asexuals, fictosexual individuals who do not experience sexual attraction towards real people are considered to be on the asexual spectrum.
When we watch a TV show or movie, we empathize with fictional characters as we would with another “real” person right in front of us. We experience psychological effects such as identification, self-other taking, and the proximity effect.
It's fine to fantasize about your TV (or movie or book) hero. You need be concerned only if the feeling is so intense or obsessive that it interferes with your normal life and prevents you from being able to love someone real.
Short answer: No. Fictiophilia is not an officially recognized disorder. The main reason for this is that most people form healthy parasocial relationships. They learn from their favorite characters, admire them, assimilate their traits, and move on with their lives.
In most cases, people crush on fictional characters when they're not yet ready for a real-life relationship. And that's totally fine. Crushing on a fictional character is a way for you to experience all the fun of having a crush without any of the pain.
“Kinning” is when you closely relate to a character (in ways such as a characters backstory, personality, looks, or all of the above).
Crying over a fictional character doesn't mean you're overly sensitive. In fact, it is a strong indicator that you are a very empathetic person. In essence, our ability to empathize is the reason why we will be hurt over the death of a fictional character.
Fictosexuality is an umbrella term for anyone who experiences sexual attraction toward fictional characters, a general type of fictional character, or whose sexuality is influenced by fictional characters.
According to one study, while extreme instances of obsession with celebrities may be a result of underlying mental health issues, in general, it's not unhealthy to form attachments with fictional characters.
tl;dr: having crushes or being attracted to fictional characters is normal. They're not real, so even if they're younger than you, it's not at all the same as someone who is predatory to and takes advantage of real life children.
It depends on the level of obsession. If you find yourself writing fan fiction, no so bad. If you find yourself cosplaying the character at conventions, also not so bad. If you find yourself fantasizing a relationship with the character, you may need to get out more.
The graysexual pride flag, in which the gradations of gray represent intermediate sexuality. The demisexual flag, in which the black chevron represents asexuality, gray represents gray asexuality and demisexuality, white represents sexuality, and purple represents community.
Veritasexual describes the sexual attraction to exclusively real people. The opposite of veritasexual is fictosexual, the exclusive attraction to fictional characters.
Simp is an internet slang term describing someone who shows excessive sympathy and attention toward another person, typically someone who does not reciprocate the same feelings, in pursuit of affection or a sexual relationship.
Simping and kinning ARE NOT THE SAME. They have similarities as in they both relate to characters, but they ARE NOT the same, I must stress this.
Doubles: Two people (or more) who kin the same character. No Doubles: When somebody says this about a character (or characters) that they kin, they wish to not interact/etc with a person who also kins that character (or characters).
Based on this finding, scientists have hypothesized that our brains may distinguish between reality and fantasy because real things tend to have a higher degree of personal relevance than fictional things do.