A new prescription for tackling sexual violence

How some advocates are looking to dismantle rape culture using public health strategies. By Addy Baird [W]hen Tahir Duckett talks about consent with elementary and middle school boys, he often talks about video games first. “If I just hop on your Xbox without your consent, what’s your response?” Duckett says he asks the boys. Almost …

Some drugs can cause unwanted sexual side effects in men

  [Y]ou might assume that erectile dysfunction, or ED, is a normal problem that men face as they age. But because men (and women) take more medications as they age, the experts at Consumer Reports’ Best Buy Drugs report that side effects from those drugs are a little-known yet common cause of ED. “Many medications …

Nienke Helder designs therapy tools for women recovering from sexual trauma

By Angel Trinidad Design Academy Eindhoven graduate Nienke Helder has created a set of sensory objects that can be used to rehabilitate women affected by sexual abuse. Presented at this year’s Dutch Design Week, Sexual Healing is designed to help women who are suffering from trauma-induced sexual problems, such as pelvic muscle blockage. According to the …

With midlife comes sexual wisdom

Research shows women’s sexuality adapts with aging by Madison Brunner [W]hile women experience changes with the menopausal transition that can negatively affect their sex lives, they often adapt behaviorally and psychologically to these changes, according to a qualitative study by University of Pittsburgh researchers. The results of the study, which included individual and focus group …

Women don’t need to ‘switch off’ to climax, orgasm study shows

By Helen Thomson [T]he most detailed study yet of orgasm brain activity has discovered why climaxing makes women feel less pain and shown that ‘switching off’ isn’t necessary. It’s not easy to study the brain during orgasm. “A brain scanner like fMRI is the least sexy place in the world,” says Nan Wise at Rutgers …

Here’s what happens when you get an STI test — and if it comes back positive

By Erin Van Der Meer [I]f you’ve never had an STI test, you’re probably imagining it’s a horrendously awkward experience where a mean, judgmental doctor pokes around your nether regions. But like getting a needle or going to your first workout in a while, it’s one of those things that seems much worse in your …

Why Sex Education for Disabled People Is So Important

“Just because a person has a disability does not mean they don’t still have the same hormones and sexual desires as other individuals.”   By Ariel Henley “Sex and disability, disability and sex; the two words may seem incompatible,” Michael A. Rembis wrote in his 2009 paper on the social model of disabled sexuality. Though …

Long-term sexual satisfaction: What’s the secret?

Once the flutters of a new relationship are over, for many, the slog of everyday life sets in. But how do you keep the spark alive? By Yella Hewings-Martin PhD [S]ex is a key factor in most romantic relationships. In fact, earlier this year, Medical News Today reported that the “afterglow” that newlywed couples feel for up to …

More than a third of Americans in relationships are sexually unsatisfied

By SWNS [O]ver a third of Americans in a relationship are not satisfied with their sex life, according to a new study. The study of 1,000 American relationships saw 34 percent of people unable to rate their sex life as either “satisfying” or “very satisfying.” One in six (16 percent) say their current spouse or …