ON THE QUESTION OF SEXUALITY Kuzmina Zarina Vitalievna Psychiatrist, narcologist, psychotherapist Sexuality and sexual behavior are an integral part of human life, just like air, water, food and rest. According to the pyramid of needs of social psychologist Abraham Maslow, sexual behavior is one of the basic needs, because a person who is not satisfied with a basic need will not be able to strive to comprehend and satisfy other higher and more subtle needs. Along with the understanding of the inalienability of sexuality as a part of our life, there is also there is a concept of sex as something dirty and obscene. Today you can find different and not always adequate reactions even among medical specialists, which can be said about someone else. And attitudes towards sexuality have always changed to one degree or another. Taking a brief excursion into history, we will see that in the last two hundred to two hundred and fifty years, attitudes towards sexuality have undergone, one might say, revolutionary changes. Yes, yes, the same sexual revolution that has reached us, I now mean the citizens of the CIS, in the last two or three decades. Until the mid-19th century, serious attempts to study human sexual behavior were made relatively rarely. Only a few scientists cautiously penetrated into this area, sometimes risking their personal and professional reputation [2, p. 28]. The earliest sexological studies had to be based on descriptions of historical cases, since all other sources of information were practically inaccessible, and asking people about such things were considered impermissible. At the beginning of the 19th century, several historical works were published on sexuality in ancient Greece and Rome. An important shift in methodology occurred in 1906, when the German physician Ivan Bloch coined the term "science of sex" and began studying the history of prostitution and what he called "unusual sexual behavior." Bloch's work was the first to recognize the importance of a historical approach to understanding the foundations of human sexuality. In the 19th century, three prominent figures, Richard von Krafft-Ebing, Sigmund Freud and Henry Havelock Ellis, managed to draw attention to sexual problems [2, p. 29]. As one might imagine, during that period of European history when sexual attitudes and behavior were regulated by a highly repressive moral code, sex became a major factor in emotional and mental disorders for patients seeking medical help. When sexual behavior and sex-related experiences should, according to existing ideas, inevitably cause feelings of guilt, fear and self-loathing, then they can serve as the cause of many disorders. At the beginning of the 20th century, the Dutch physician Theodor Van de Velde (1926) published his book “ Perfect marriage". In his book, the author placed great emphasis on the significance of sensations during sex; sexual relations were limited within the strict framework of marriage with an almost obsessive attention to hygiene. An outstanding researcher of sexuality is Alfred C. Kinsey (1894 - 1956). Kinsey founded and directed the Institute for the Study of Sexuality at Indiana University. Today it is called the Kinsey Institute for the Study of Sexuality, Gender and Reproduction. The two most famous studies are “The Sexual Behavior of Men” and “The Sexual Behavior of Women,” published in 1948 and 1953, respectively. The appearance of these books was an important stage in sexology [2, p. 33]. G.S. Vasilchenko was established in 1973 at the Moscow Research Institute of Psychiatry of the Ministry of Health of the RSFSR. The first manuals for doctors - “General Sexopathology” was published in 1977and “Private Sexopathology” in 1983 [1, p.3]. Unfortunately, in our independent Republic there is no research institute of sexology to this day, all we have are separate advanced courses for doctors from two to four weeks, research the work is carried out by units of specialists in related specialties in very narrow areas and does not have a systematic approach. Which, in general, could improve the quality of medical care and increase the level of life satisfaction of the citizens of our Republic. To summarize, we can conclude that in different parts of the world sexology is at different stages of development. Each researcher worked on its various aspects and put his own meaning into the concept of sexuality. In everyday practice, sexuality is usually defined as a biologically determined urge, or impulse aimed at a member of the opposite sex (normal sexuality) or any other object (so-called perverted sexuality) manifested in behavior. The practice of sexuality indicates a person’s sexual orientation or sexual identity [3] In psychoanalytic experience and theory, sexuality is not only a special activity and pleasure associated with the functioning of the genital apparatus, but also a series of arousals and actions that give a person pleasure from early childhood , which constitutes one of the elements of so-called normal sexual love. Psychoanalysis attaches great importance to sexuality in human mental life. Thus, according to Sigmund Freud’s definition, the basis of neurotic and psychotic disorders is an unrealized or altered need to satisfy sexual desire - libido. In the concept of “libido,” Freud put a very broad concept, which can be described as a certain mental energy, which is a type of physiological energy [4, p. 462]. V. Masters and V. Johnson considered sexuality and sexual interaction as a set of behavioral reactions and one of forms of interaction between two individuals. The parallels drawn by the authors between the lectures of men and women confirmed the classical provisions of sexual physiology [5, p. 8]. Russian professor, Doctor of Medical Sciences G.B. Deryagin, who deals with issues of criminal sexology and forensic medicine, defines human sexuality as a set of biological, psychophysiological, mental and emotional reactions, experiences and actions of a person associated with the manifestation and satisfaction of sexual desire [6]. The most comprehensive and scientific definition of sexuality is given by the Small Medical Encyclopedia: “Sexuality is a set of emotional experiences and behavioral acts caused by sexual desire. The variety of manifestations of human sexuality is due to many factors – psychosocial, genetic, hormonal, nervous, as well as some individual personality traits”[7]. It must be emphasized that this definition indicates all possible aspects of the origin, manifestation, and development of sexuality as part of human life. Undoubtedly, sexuality is a factor that encourages people to live and work together, is a driving force for bringing people together and uniting, one of the components of family life. Sexuality is an integral desire to express one’s inner self and realize oneself in society. Thus, the concept of “sexuality” is polysemantic and multifaceted, interpreted by each researcher in its own context, but in general it is an integral part of human life in its most vivid and varied manifestations. Sources: Kon I.S. Introduction to sexology. – M.: Medicine, 1989. – 336 pp. Kelly G. Fundamentals of modern sexology – St. Petersburg: Petersburg Publishing House, 2000. – 896 pp. Dictionary of gender terms. P.I. Sidorov, A.V. Parnyakov. Clinical psychology: textbook. – Publishing house GEOTAR Group – Media, 2008. – 880 pp. D.L. Burtyansky. V.V. Krishtal, G.V. Smirnov. Fundamentals of Clinical, 2003.