Talking about Sex

by David Yarian on February 23, 2012

An important element in finding a better sex life is learning how to talk with your partner about sex.  Most adults know how to talk about all kinds of things with their significant other – from plans for the weekend, to what kind of car to buy – but when the topic is sex, it all seems to go out the window.

Here’s a brief guide to having better conversations about sex with your partner:

  • Choose the right time and place. It’s a bad idea to try to talk about a difficult topic when you are tired or upset. Many couples talk about sex only after something goes wrong, late at night when both are exhausted. Instead, look for a time when everyone is calm and relaxed, and when there is no pressure to immediately move into sexual activity.
  • Be positive. Bookend your conversation with positive affirmations of the love you feel for your partner and your desire for closeness and mutual respect. Criticism is likely to yield only defensiveness, so be complimentary of your partner as you tell him or her what you’re feeling and thinking.
  • Be clear about what you want. Use accurate language rather than euphemisms. It works better to say something like “I’d love for you to stroke my penis with a light touch” rather than “Get me excited – you know how.”
  • Know that telling the truth in love to your partner is offering them a wonderful gift.

Few of us grew up witnessing healthy adult conversations about sex. Many families are silent on the subject, and children don’t learn how, or even if, it is possible to talk clearly and openly about sex. So, this is a skill that has to be learned in adult life. Ask you partner to join you in learning how to communicate so that together you can create a more satisfying sexual relationship.

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Marty Klein’s New Book

by David Yarian on February 14, 2012

Marty Klein is one of my favorite authors. He’s a sex therapist in Palo Alto who consistently publishes thought-provoking books, filled with fresh ideas and revolutionary concepts about sexuality and healthy sexual relationships.

His new book – just released — is Sexual Intelligence: What We Really Want From Sex, And How to Get It, published by Harper Collins.

Here’s what Marty says about the book:
“In my 31 years of therapy with couples and individuals , I keep hearing people say that what they want from sex is pleasure and closeness. And yet most people focus on other things during sex–how they look, what their partner is thinking, how they compare to others, whether they’re normal, or the dreaded ‘performance.’”

Sexual Intelligence is filled with ideas about how to create enjoyable sex in your intimate relationship. The advice is practical and down to earth. Marty has a gift for telling stories about real people in real situations.

I heartily recommend this book to anyone wanting fresh perspective on being part of a successful intimate relationship! I’ll be doing a complete book review soon.  But, hey – beat me to it! Grab a copy and read this now!

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Sex in Movies

February 12, 2012

It surprises me, though it probably shouldn’t, how sex is often portrayed in popular movies. What gets me is how quickly it occurs. Two people are having an intense conversation and suddenly clothes are coming off (or not) and without so much as a kiss or a lingering caress, they are having intercourse. While this [...]

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Performance Anxiety

February 8, 2012

Many people experience performance anxiety, and it can lie at the root of a number of sexual problems including erectile dysfunction, premature ejaculation, delayed ejaculation, difficulty reaching orgasm in women and general lack of arousal. Performance anxiety means, simply, that you’re worried about your ability to perform an important task. Sexually this may mean that [...]

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Joy of Making Love

February 4, 2012

I’ve recently created a new online resource for adults wishing to learn more about sexuality and how to create more erotic enjoyment in their lives. It’s called Joy of Making Love and it’s filled with reviews of terrific books, video and music that celebrate the joy of making love and the pleasures of erotic connection. [...]

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It Gets Better and Better

January 22, 2012

Sometimes in my conversations with clients I refer to something I call the Continuum of Sexual Experience. This is a graphical representation of the range of possible experiences in a sexual relationship. I usually don’t draw it, but if I did, it would look like this: No Sex – – Bad Sex – – Good [...]

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Welcome

January 9, 2012

Welcome to my blog! Here I will post occasional “notes” – musings on the rich complexity of human sexuality, the diversity of human sexual behavior, and the interface between sexuality and culture. I’m a practicing sex therapist, and I count it a privilege to sit with individuals and couples who are exploring their sexual lives [...]

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