boundaries

If you want to explore various aspects of kink — or whatever you want to call it — there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that, and it can be fun and one way to build rich, fulfilling relationships.

The good news is that you do not have to be sexually active until you’re ready. Virginity, aside from being an idea rather than a physical thing you can lose, is not something you need to race to “get rid of.” There are no prizes for being the first person in your school to have sex, and no…

What to do, and what to avoid like the plague, when you’re crushing on someone hard.

You’ve got a few layers to this question, so let’s peel them off and look at them one by one. Let’s get “is this normal” out of the way first. Normal is a deeply unhelpful concept when it comes to sex. We can talk about how common certain behaviors or desires are, although even then that may not be…

I can spot one big thing that’s making sex unpleasant for you, and it has zero to do with your brain or body being “wrong”. It’s got everything to do with your boyfriend. Before I go into why that is, there’s something else that needs addressing. You mention someone abused you as a child, and I’m so…

Rule #1 of partnered sex: no one is entitled to any kind of sex with another person. Safe, healthy, pleasurable sex can only happen when both people are on the same page, and they respect each other’s boundaries and desires. Honestly, what I read in your question are many feelings of anger and…

I think you are reading this situation absolutely right. That thing he’s doing, when you reach out to talk and he requests pictures and then threatens to break up if you won’t? That is a truly manipulative and toxic dynamic. It’s also a major red flag in terms of a relationship being abusive…

Oof, this is a tough spot, and I’m sorry you’ve found yourself in it. I want to start by saying that your instincts, and what you’ve been hearing, are spot on. When you sense that someone you care about is being isolated by a partner, especially a partner with a history of harassment and assault, it…

First off, I want to say that it takes an incredible amount of strength to have gone through (and continue to go through) what you have and survive. You’ve managed to grown and thrive in spite of other people doing awful things to you. That’s not nothing. And that strength is going to come in handy…

Hi Freckle Face, There are a couple of things in your question that I want to address. The first is that you are, correctly, noticing that your friends are applying a double standard when it comes to talking about sex with you. Now, to be clear, people have different levels of comfort around…