Bisexuality on the rise, says new U.S. survey

2016-01-14

By Carina Storrs, Special to CNN

The Best Way to Broach the “STD Talk” with a New Partner

2016-01-05

The CDC recommends talking about STDs each and every time you have a new partner. This should occur before sexual relations commence. Of course, this conversation can be awkward. There is a social stigma surrounding STDs, despite whether the person practiced safe sex in their past or acquired one through some kind of accident. Also, there is a lack of education on the part of many, solidifying the stigma. Today we are in the midst of a casual, hookup culture. Since relationships especially among young people are kept superficial, partners are more afraid to broach uncomfortable topics, or ask deeply probing questions. You cannot take all of the sting out of this conversation. But there are some helpful ways to broach the subject when with a new partner that can limit discomfort and keep things on a positive track. One of the best ways to do it, is to begin with yourself.

Let them know the last time you were tested. Tell your partner if there has been any infections in your past, or if you are dealing with an ongoing one such as herpes or HIV. Tell them what your preferred method of protection is, and ask what they prefer. Think about what you want to say beforehand when you think things may be leading to sex. But be sure this talk occurs before you are in the throes of passion, so that it does not ruin the mood, and both of you can enjoy peace of mind. In any hookup situation, you should use a condom regardless. Sometimes people have STIs, an infection which is not showing symptoms.

Instead of asking a partner to get tested, make it a “we” thing. Ask them to go with you, and get tested together before the act takes place. If they are resistant, remind them that every sexually active adult should be tested at least once a year, according to the CDC. For men that means going to a clinic, seeing a doctor, or an urologist.

A Few Unseemly Options for Male Enhancement

Ads for increasing the length and size of the penis flood the internet. Few of us have to be told that most if not all are illegitimate. These products and procedures can cause unseemly side effects, while hardly any gain in size or girth is achieved. For instance, researchers at the University of Turin in Italy investigated male enhancement procedures in two studies. The first contained 121 male subjects, the second 109.

These scientists concluded that the vast majority of procedures were too dangerous and risked serious complications. Moreover, for most men seeking these surgeries or devices, the problem is not in their pants but in their head. One 2005 study with 92 male participants found that although each went to a physician for enhancement, none actually had a small penis. The majority of men are average in size according to a recent British study. Small is considered 3 in. (7.6 cm) when erect. Anything above that is normal. Media focus on size, societal pressure to be above average in everything, mistaken impressions from porn, and general male confusion over what the average size looks like fuel this phenomenon. Still, Italian researchers did come across a few options that had positive results.

One was the “traction method.” Here a penis stretcher was attached to the member each day. The penis was then put in traction for four to six hours over the course of four months. The end result was a gain of 0.67 in. (1.7 cm) when erect. In one small study, penoscrotal rings were utilized. These squeeze the scrotum and base of the penis, increasing size and helping a man to maintain an erection. Another option was using a penis pump daily. This is a vacuum tube which is placed over the penis. A hand pump creates suction, engorging the penis with blood. Healthy men found this option to be painful and the gain less than significant. There are certain procedures in the works such as injectable enlargement products. But these have some time before they hit the market.

Any man truly dissatisfied with his size should discuss the matter with a doctor or urologist, get some perspective, and see what his options truly are.

Ten Things You Need to Know Before You Presume That Old People Don’t Have Sex

2015-12-17

This Is The Ejaculation Problem That Men Want To Avoid Mentioning

While premature ejaculation is a commonly known problem amongs men, it is delayed ejaculation problem that is bothering an increasing number of male members in the population.

Delayed ejaculation is a condition when men find it tough to reach an orgasm while having sex even when they are enjoying the act. As of now, an approximate eight percent of men in America are suffering from this condition.

Also, premature ejaculation causes men to let it out in less than three minutes, delayed ejaculation has no predefined time frame.

Even though there are no clear set of symptoms of this condition, Tobias Köhler, M.D., M.P.H., an associate professor of urology at the Southern Illinois University School of Medicine, points out that those who can’t have an orgasm even after twenty minutes of trying are victims.

Journal of Sexual Medicine points out that an average guy does not need more than five minutes to do the job. Twenty minutes is too far from the ideal situation.

Elaborating on the condition, the report explains ejaculation to be a complicated process that involves the brain, nerve cells and of course the pelvic muscles.

Ultimately, during the act, the brain sends out the final message that asks the pelvic muscles to release the semen for pleasure.

However, in victims of delayed ejaculation, the message from the brain is lost in transit due to poor communication between the nerves. This could be due to various disease like diabetes, sclerosis and others.

Guys with low testosterone and thyroid hormone levels are also likely to fall prey to this condition. Delayed ejaculation is draining, physically as well as mentally.

Approaching a urologist is the right way to initiate treatment for this condition. Even a sex health expert can help overcome this problem. But, patients have to be prepared to answer some personal questions and be truthful about their problems when they come to seek treatment.

Read more: http://www.healthaim.com/ejaculation-problem-men-want-avoid-mentioning/34472#ixzz3uatFhEZS

25 Ways to Fix a Sexless Marriage

2015-12-03

This is actually great advice for anyone who’s in a relationship (Photo by Aaron Richter)

Even happily married guys wonder what sorts of itches they’d be scratching if they were to ditch their partner. Their “newly single” fantasy might include long, naked weekends with a Hooters waitress, but the reality is not nearly as provocative.

As a divorced man, you are 39 percent more likely to commit suicide. Even if you don’t kill yourself, you will die younger. And forget chasing tail; your mobility also suffers from singlehood.

Oh, and yes, divorce crushes your finances: A study of divorced baby boomers found that a split slashed their wealth to less than a quarter of what they would’ve had if they’d never wed at all.

So we’ve collected 25 tips that can protect you from the sickly, cash-poor, single life. Save your marriage before it’s too late!

(To see how much work your relationship really needs, check out How Strong Is Your Marriage?)

1. Assume the Best Explanation for What She Did, Not the Worst
Think of an annoying thing she does that you regularly misinterpret. Psychologists call this a “maladaptive attribution.” Then stop it. You can improve your marriage simply by thinking about it differently; choose the kindest possible interpretation for her actions instead of the ugliest.

2. Take the Zero-Negativity Challenge
How many days this month can you go without doing or saying a single negative, hurtful thing to your partner? Give it a try, suggest Harville Hendrix, Ph.D., and Helen LaKelly Hunt, Ph.D., who’ve written 10 books on relationships.

You can strike sarcasm off the list too. In the words of Terry Real, the author of The New Rules of Marriage: “Sarcasm eats intimacy.” Your words matter. Measure them.

3.  A Foot Massage Works Wonders; A Head Massage Works Miracles

4. Don’t Make a Complaint. Make a Request Instead (Politely!)

5. Write Her a Letter—On Paper
A University of Denver study of soldiers found that exchanging letters with their wives had a more positive and long-lasting effect than texting did.

6. Watch This Sex Video
“Makeup sex” doesn’t solve a fight, and latent anger can be a lust killer. Sit down together and watch family therapist Michele Weiner-Davis’s TEDx talk “The Sex-Starved Marriage” on YouTube.

Even if you’re not exactly starving, this video can help stoke hunger now and forever.

7. Don’t Try to Fix Her Problems—Just Listen to Them
“Men are conditioned to solve problems and to protect the women they love,” says couples therapist Shiri Cohen, Ph.D., an instructor at Harvard Medical School.

“This can backfire when all she really wants is to be heard,” she says. “The next time your mate needs to vent or complain, just give her your open ears.”

If you think you do have a good solution, wait and bring it up later during a separate conversation.

8. Sweat with Her, Then Hop in the Shower Together Later. It’s Healthy!
For 20 years, Thomas Bradbury, Ph.D., and Benjamin Karney, Ph.D., of UCLA’s Marriage Lab, followed more than 1,000 couples to evaluate the different ways partners support each other in their efforts to make important changes in their lives. Bradbury says he was amazed that the most common topic—coming up in about seven out of 10 couples—was that they wanted to change to a healthier lifestyle.

Their book, Love Me Slender, shows couples how to work together to maintain healthy weights. A new large-scale British study seconds that: “Men and women are more likely to make a positive health behavior change if their partner does too,” the authors note. Get started today withThe Best Workouts to Do with a Partner.

9. Look Past Her Flaws (Don’t Try to Eliminate Them)
“Look above the things you find annoying or unpleasant,” says Douglas LaBier, Ph.D., a psychologist based in D.C. “Respond to the best qualities in her—which will always make her best side stronger.”

10. Tell the Kids to Shut Up While You Two “Connect”
“A measly 15 minutes,” says William Doherty, Ph.D., a professor of family social science at the University of Minnesota. These kinds of “connection rituals” hotwire your whole life together. So do it.

Introducing an STD You’ve Never Heard Of

Use condoms if you’d prefer to avoid it. (Image via AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews, File)

Take heed, folks: There appears to be a newish STD in town. It’s “newish” because doctors have known about mycoplasma genitalium, or MG, since 1981, but researchers have now found the strongest evidence to date that it can be transmitted through sexual contact.

They analyzed urine samples from 4,507 Brits aged 16 to 44 and found that 1% of those who had at least one sexual partner had MG, reports theIndependent. The figure rose to 5.2% of men and 3.1% of women who had more than four sexual partners in the previous year, per Mic. Tellingly, no sign of the infection was found in the 200 or so participants who had never had sex.

“There were strong associations with risky sexual behaviors, with behavioral risk factors similar to those in other known STIs, and no infections were detected in those reporting no previous sexual experience,” the authors say.

While sufferers may report genital discharge, pelvic pain, pain while urinating, and bleeding after sex in the case of women, “over 90% of men and more than half of women with MG had no symptoms,” a researcher tells the Guardian. The lead author notes the infection could also lead to inflammations of the urethra or cervix (urethritis or cervicitis), pelvic inflammatory disease, and female infertility, but further research is needed to understand the long-term effects.

A sex researcher adds there’s no need to freak out. MG “is prevented in the same ways that gonorrhea and chlamydia are: by using condoms properly and consistently,” she says. Doctors, she adds, should keep the results in mind when patients have ailments such as urethritis or cervicitis but test negative for gonorrhea or chlamydia. (This condomchanges color near STDs.)

By Arden Dier