Trying to figure out where you fit on the sexuality spectrum?

Dabbling in these tests might help. Human sexuality spans too wide a scope to possibly be covered by a single test. By Sara Chodosh Alfred Kinsey’s spectrum of human sexuality shocked the world when he published it in 1948. His book, Sexual Behavior in the Human Male featured extensive interviews with 5300 people—almost exclusively white …

6 Things Every Transgender Person Should Know About Going to the Doctor

You deserve sensitive, comprehensive care. By Nathan Levitt, FNP-BC [T]ransgender patients often experience tremendous barriers to health care, including discrimination and an unfortunate lack of providers who are knowledgeable about and sensitive to this population. As a result, many transgender and nonbinary people avoid seeking care for preventive and life-threatening conditions out of fear. According to …

Want to figure out the rules of sexual consent? Ask sex workers.

by Jessie Patella-Rey [T]he #MeToo movement has pushed issues of consent to the foreground of our cultural zeitgeist. Confoundingly, though, some of the movement’s most vocal champions seem to be the worst at respecting the very conventions they are espousing. Shortly after now-former New York attorney general Eric Schneiderman filed a lawsuit against Hollywood producer …

How Do You Figure Out What You Really Want From A Relationship, Anyway?

By Kasandra Brabaw [M]any times, the advice that sex and relationship experts give to anyone who wants to have a great relationship or sex life boils down to one main principle: communication. People have to ask for what they want out of a relationship and/or sex, and then keep talking to their partner about how …

Can We Please Stop Blaming Women For Not Being Able To Orgasm?

By Kasandra Brabaw [M]edical experts, sexologists, and other sexperts had a lot to say when a Twitter user named La Sirena tweeted on Monday morning that all women should be able to have orgasms from penetrative sex alone. “When a woman can’t have an orgasm from pure penetration she’s usually suffering from some deep-seated mental …

BDSM and consent

How to stop rough sex crossing the line into abuse By Soraya Auer [W]hen allegations of assault were made against New York’s top prosecutor Eric Schneiderman this week, he denied them, saying engaging in non-consensual sex was a line he would not cross. “In the privacy of intimate relationships, I have engaged in role-playing and …

Queen Mother of the South: My Life as a Transgender Parent

By Evonne Kaho [T]he Southern part of the U.S. has to be one of the more conservative regions in the nation. Rooted in traditional, religious, and conventional values, it is often referred to as the “Bible Belt.” Southern traditionalists marvel at their old-fashioned ways and high moral standards. These standards are applied to every aspect …

What Your Recurring Sexuality Fantasy Really Says About You

  By Anna Medaris Miller [T]urned on by whips? Tickled by images of same-sex lovers, threesomes, and sex on public park benches—despite your straight, monogamous, and law-abiding identity? Congratulations! You’re human. Sexual fantasies are part of a healthy sex life—they’re simply thoughts and scenarios that get you going, says Laura McGuire, Ed.D., a sex educator …

Here’s How Consent and BDSM Role-Play Actually Work

By Alexa Tsoulis-Reay In an article published in The New Yorker, four women detailed the extreme psychological and physical violence they say they experienced at the hands of former New York attorney general Eric Schneiderman. In response, Schneiderman resigned, but he also made a disturbing statement linking these women’s allegations with sexual role play. His …

Mutual masturbation could help end orgasm inequality

May is National Masturbation Month, so we’re celebrating by exploring the many facets of self-love. By Rachel Thompson [S]o, your sexual partner just came and you didn’t. It’s infuriating, it’s frustrating, and it’s — rather dismally — all too common during heterosexual sex. I’m talking about the orgasm gap — the inequality in men and …

Performance Anxiety Doesn’t Mean the End of Your Sex Life… Here’s Why

Sometimes sex can be stressful, but these steps may help you get your groove back. by Stephanie Booth [A]fter her first sexual partner belittled her in the bedroom, Steph Auteri began second-guessing herself when it came to sex. “I felt self-conscious and nervous about being a disappointment to the other person,” the 37-year-old says. “I …

Beyond breadwinners and homemakers, we need to examine how same-sex couples divide housework

By Leah Ruppanner and Claudia Geist [H]ousework is often understood as a gendered negotiation based on the traditional roles of homemaker (feminine) and breadwinner (masculine). While gender norms have shifted dramatically in the past few decades, theories of housework are still stuck on this 1950s model. Shifting family structures, including the rising number of same-sex …

Masturbating has a number of health benefits for women too, so why aren’t we talking about them?

May is National Masturbation Month By Erika Lust [T]he idea that women enjoy sex still hasn’t quite reached societal acceptance. There is no purer example of this than the taboo which surrounds a woman enjoying the pleasure of masturbating. Masturbation is widely accepted as an essential part of health and hygiene – for men. Women’s …