The 9 Best Polyamorous Dating Apps You Can Download Right Now

Plus, what to put on your profile if you’re on a more traditionally “monogamous” app. By Madeline Howard ICYMI, there are *so* many dating apps out there nowadays. From Hinge to Bumble to Tinder, if you’re out there in the ~dating world~ odds are that you’ve tried them all. But what about people who identify …

What does it mean to be heterosexual?

Being exclusively attracted to people of the opposite sex is a surprisingly recent phenomenon. By Annie Hayes While heterosexual sex is certainly nothing new, heterosexuality – the quality of being sexually attracted exclusively to people of the opposite sex – is a surprisingly recent phenomenon. In 1901, Dorland’s Medical Dictionary defined heterosexuality as an ‘abnormal …

Sex between straight men challenges traditional sexual identities

Attractions, behaviours and identities do not always align, says UBC professor Tony Silva By Craig Takeuchi If straight men have sex with other men, that means that they’re closeted, and have internalized homophobia, right? Not necessarily, according to University of British Columbia sociology professor Tony Silva. Silva’s new book Still Straight: Sexual Flexibility Among White …

What does it mean to be intersex?

by Jayne Leonard “Intersex” is the term that a person may use when they have both male and female sex characteristics. These characteristics include genitalia, hormones, chromosomes, and reproductive organs. Being intersex is not a disease. It is a naturally occurring variation in humans. Likewise, being intersex does not affect an infant’s physical health, though …

Is the Kinsey Scale of Sexual Behavior Still Valid?

The decades-old classification system for the study of sex may still have value, but new frameworks offer more. By Sophie Putka Alfred Kinsey’s imprint on the world of sexuality has — and continues to — inspire criticism, fascination, even outrage. It’s a captivating legacy for a man who spent the first half of his career …

What to know about internalized homophobia

Internalized homophobia occurs when a person is subject to society’s negative perceptions, intolerance, and stigma toward people with same-sex attraction. They then turn those ideas inward, believing that they are true, and experience self-hatred as a result of being a socially stigmatized person. by Zawn Villines Internalized homophobia happens when a person consciously or unconsciously …

There Are at Least 8 Different Romantic Orientations

—Here’s Why Learning Yours Is Important by Mary Grace Garis Many understand sexual orientation to be the term that describes who a person is attracted to, in terms of gender and sexual identity. But, it’s possible that sexual desire and romantic desire won’t line up, which is why it’s important to understand sexual orientation and …

How I Have Sex

— “I Can End Up Feeling Nothing Even When All the Right ‘Spots’ Are Touched” By The Swaddle Team The first time I remember thinking about sex was at the age of 15, when I started dating my first boyfriend. As teenagers, we were curious about this and started thinking about it more when there …

The A-to-Z Guide to Open Relationship Terminology

Opening things up is more complicated than hot sex with lots of partners. It’s also going to involve some intense conversations, and having the right words can be a big help. By Sophie Saint Thomas Open relationships are becoming incredibly mainstream—more and more people are recognizing that monogamy only works for some people, and there’s …

We Need to Talk About the Lack of LGBTQ+ Representation in Sex Ed

By Delilah Gray When I was in high school, none of my teachers ever mentioned LGBTQ+ safe sex and relationships, especially not in my sexual-education classes, which were meant to be the one place I could learn about these things. And as a member of the LGBTQ+ community, that deeply bothered me. In a 2013 …