Sex With Emily - Communicate Your Sexual Needs
Episode Date: April 9, 2024It’s 2024, and there’s no denying that everybody has sexual needs. However, it can be really difficult to articulate them and share them with your partner. On today’s throwback Ask Emily show, I...’m here to help you take that vital next step and get your needs fulfilled. From those who’ve never had an orgasm before to those who just want to communicate with their partners better, I’ve got you! Just remember: for every sex problem, there is a path forward. In this episode you’ll learn: How to communicate your sexual needs (even if your partner shuts down sex convos) Techniques to give your partner a crazy orgasm What to do if your partner desires things you might not be sure about like swinging Show Notes: Get your tickets HERE for Sex with Emily LIVE! Promescent.com/Emily (Use this link to automatically save 15% at checkout!) SHOP WITH EMILY! (free shipping on orders over $99) The only sex book you’ll ever need: Smart Sex: How to Boost Your Sex IQ and Own Your Pleasure Want more? Sex With Emily: Home Let’s get social: Instagram | X | Facebook | TikTok Let’s text: Sign Up Here Want me to slide into your inbox? Sign Up Here for sex tips on the regular. See the full show notes at sexwithemily.com.
Transcript
Discussion (0)
I can't tell you over the years how many men have emailed and said that they feel shame
about it, that they're in the basement hiding and masturbating so that no one finds out
and then they feel this terrible guilt and shame after.
Some have it because they're hiding from their wife, some have it because they grew up in
an environment where it was a shame to ever masturbate.
I would love to all of you and all the listeners
and you Dan to start, you know,
being your own best advocates for masturbation.
You're listening to Sex with Emily.
I'm Dr. Emily and I'm here to help you
prioritize your pleasure and liberate
the conversation around sex.
There are wants and then there are needs, sexual needs to be precise.
Well, in today's Ask Emily show, everyone has that one need that they're longing to
satisfy.
They just don't know how to do it.
Well, good news, the sex expert has arrived and I'm here to help you take that next vital
step.
If you want a hotter sex life,
but your partner shuts down around sex convos,
I've got communication tips.
How about when you want your partner to have a crazy orgasm,
but you just don't know the right techniques?
Yep, I talk about the great ones.
And finally, if your partner desires a sexual experience
like swinging, but you're not so sure,
what in the world do you do?
Answer, will you listen to this episode?
Because I promise for every sex problem,
there is a path forward.
Please rate and review Sex with Emily
wherever you listen to the show.
It really helps us get the show out to more people
and we read all of your reviews.
And check out my new articles,
six ways to use cannabis for sex, a guide,
and how to increase your chance of orgasm during sex
on SexWithEmily.com.
If you wanna ask me a question, just call my hotline,
559-TALK-SEX or 559-825-5739.
Just leave me your questions
or message me, SexWithEmily.com slash ask Emily.
All right, everyone, enjoy this episode.
Hey there, penis owners. Ask Emily. All right everyone, enjoy this episode.
Hey there penis owners, it is time to give your penis the workout it deserves. You heard me. You know how you hit the gym for your biceps and your triceps? Well believe it or not,
it's essential to exercise your penis too. And guess who can help you out? The world's best selling penis pump, Bathmate.
Bathmate is the only FDA regulated hydro pump on the market
and it's designed to give your penis
a safe and effective workout.
It harnesses the power of water through a hydraulic vacuum
acting as a secondary pump to your heart
so you can draw blood safely into the penis.
All you do is fill it with warm water,
slide your penis in, you create this fill it with warm water, slide your
penis in, you create this vacuum for just three minutes three to five times a week
and you're gonna feel a difference. But listen, it's not about the size. Bathmate
also helps flush toxins and maintain tissue health, improve erection quality,
erection predictability, and stamina. And get this, after two months, 81% of users
reported better erections or size gains.
But what really sets BathMate apart is the confidence it brings. You don't need to feel
inadequate, you know, thinking about your sexual performance and what's going to happen, because
BathMate helps reactivate and strengthen the neurophysiological response that causes erections.
So you build the confidence to know you can please your partners. So no more getting stuck in your head right before sex.
And now is the perfect time to buy it.
Head to bathmatedirect.com slash sexwithemily
and use code EMILY10 for 10% off.
That's code EMILY10 for 10% off
at bathmatedirect.com slash sexwithemily.
Summer is definitely the sexiest season.
I mean, think about it.
The days are longer, the nights are hotter,
and your sex life is too.
And if you're looking to turn up the heat,
how about a little help from our friends at Promescent?
Summer is all about things hot and steamy,
so I highly recommend you add something extra
and tap into Promescent's lineup
of pleasure enhancing products.
I've been singing their praises for years
since they started and for good reason.
Cause first up, we have the legendary delay spray.
This is the MVP of lasting longer
and keeping those eager penile nerves in check.
Use to a quick spray and you're set to outlast
even the longest days of summer,
ensuring the party doesn't end before you want it to.
So you can have the mind blowing climax
you're now so very well equipped to reach,
thanks to Promessin. It just helps you last longer without all the worry. And for women,
Promessin's warming arousal gel is a fun pre-sex ritual. You just rub it into your vulva a few
minutes before and you'll feel it start to tingle, warming up every nerve ending. So you'll feel that
much more pleasure everywhere before you even get going. So it's kind
of like the sure thing. So make sure this summer is the sexiest one yet. Check out
promessant.com slash Emily and get 15% off at checkout. You get free shipping,
60-day money back guarantee, discrete shipping, all the things. Promessant is
your ticket to a more guaranteed good time. That's p-r-o-m-e-s-c-e-n-t dot com slash Emily. Promessin dot com slash
Emily for your exclusive discount. Check it out.
We have Mackenzie, 30 from Florida. Tell me what's going on. So my husband and I
have been together for 10 years and twice within the last like eight months he had been
talking to other people like outside of her marriage about like how like our sex
was boring and I was never gonna change and all this stuff. That's really hurtful.
That sounds really hard. But our like sexual, I guess the way we're like sexually charged has always been kind
of off. He's always like constantly asking me like what I want to do and I, my husband's the
second partner I've ever had and he has had many more than just me. So we're kind of like off there
and so I guess just like trying to figure out like where we can kind of be on the same page
like sexually or just like, you know,
when I'm like going forward with doing things
and what he's asking,
then he's like telling me that things are fine.
But then, basically.
How did you find out that he was talking to other people
about your sex life?
I read it on his phone.
I mean, that sounds like that's really, really hurtful.
And I don't want you to justify the other things
that have been happening that still doesn't feel good.
So I just want you to know that,
cause you said it, you're like,
but all these things have been happening.
And it sounds like there's a lot happening.
You're not able to have children.
Things have been tough.
It's been 10 years.
You're 30 and you've been together since you were 20.
Yeah.
It's a long time.
Yeah.
It's a long time to be together and having only one other partner.
A lot of people, that's the time where they explore and they masturbate.
They date other people and they figure out what they actually like.
You haven't really had any breathing room to even sit down and think,
well, what does Mackenzie like? What actually turns me on? And if the sex has been a lot of focused on penetration and his pleasure,
then there's really not a lot of room for you. So in a sense, I get that I understand that he's asking you what you want,
what turns you on, and that could feel a little bit stifling because you don't have the answer. Maybe you don't know what to do, what to find that answer. And so do you think
that he would be interested in partnering with you on figuring out what you do like and who you are
as a sexual being and what turned you on? Yeah, and we've definitely talked about that before,
where you know, because I've said, well, you well, obviously I don't have as much experience as him.
And that is something that he said,
well, that's something that I wanna experience with you.
But to me, it's almost like,
yeah, we've experienced obviously different things
as we've continued to move forward with our relationship.
It's not like we're just having missionary sex
for the last 10 years.
But to me, it almost feels a little bit different.
It's not like,
yes I am experiencing those things, but it's not like apples to apples in comparison.
So it sounds like you're kind of on this experience thing. Is he also your age?
Yeah, we're the same age.
Okay, so maybe he had a few sexual partners before you. I mean there's this notion that
I'd like to debunk right now. A lot of people think that like an experienced sexual partner
has to do with the number of people that we've slept with.
Oh, well, they've had 60 partners and I've had two.
And so I'm showing up and I'm already behind the eight ball
here because I can't possibly keep up with that.
But I can tell you that there's a very,
that being a skilled lover has a lot less to do
with how many people you've slept with.
It has to do with being somebody who is curious, who pays attention, who has learned with a partner
how to fulfill each other's needs and they communicate and they talk and they
evolve and they grow together. So I would love you to be less hung up on that and
more like coming together on this sex life of yours and saying, here's the state of it as I see it,
and what can we do to build a new version of our sex life?
10 years in for our 10 year anniversary,
let's commit to setting a plan for our sexual future.
And I think that would involve,
if he's so curious about what you want in bed
and what turned you on, you guys could do have some nights where maybe you're doing some mutual
masturbation or you know you're going off taking time for yourself to masturbate and to really
think about what turned you on but I didn't know and I wasn't married in my 20s it took me a while
like I had to really focus on it and study and learn and I'm still learning like that's the
other thing like you don't get to a point where you're like,
I have enough experience with sex
and now I'm gonna move on and take up golf.
Like it's really just part of your becoming expert golfer
or something like you really are growing
with every decade, every year.
He wants to know like what I want or what I want to do.
And I just, I don't really know how to
kind of portray that to him just because like, I don't know,
there's like things that I see and I'm like,
oh yeah, that seems like it would be fun,
but it's not like, yes, I would love to do that.
What if you said to him,
I really realized that I actually don't know what I want.
When you asked me what I want,
I would so love to be able to answer that question.
However, I've learned that there's something I need and I really need your help with this.
I'd like to set aside time where we're exploring together.
Maybe one night all about your pleasure and he's pleasing you and he's going down on you.
It's patience too.
It's learning to slowly touch your body,
give you a massage and then you're really
mindful saying, well that felt good, I'm not sure about that, maybe you can go
harder, faster, slower, you know, and if you don't have fantasies that's fine too.
You can watch some porn together. For many Volvo owners, we just don't all have
fantasies. A lot of penis owners don't either, so and that's okay too, it's all
okay, but if you'd like to know, have fantasies,
or you'd like to get more curious,
it really is a combination of educating yourself,
so I love that you're listening to the podcast,
surrounding yourself by sex positive people,
follow other sex accounts on Instagram,
read some great books about sex,
and then just start to kind of bring that
into your relationship together and say,
will you come on a journey with me
to really learn about who I am sexually and then we can grow together. Does he know that
you found the texts in his phone?
Oh yeah. We're going to a couple of counseling and she actually has an extensive background
in sexual behaviors and affairs.
So we just started.
Great.
Well, that's really great self care.
And I love that you're both going, which is incredible.
I can't tell you how many times there's couples
where one partner doesn't want to go.
So you're both showing up.
And so now I think it's just time for you, Mackenzie,
to show a little bit more of vulnerability about,
you know what?
This is really awkward.
I actually feel bad that I don't know.
You can even say, you talk to me, listen to the show.
And I realized that I have a journey to do.
I have to figure it out.
You know, we did a great podcast with John Gottman
and he talked about a couple that was sort of similar
in the sense of he had a lot more experience.
She didn't, they were together for a while
and they took sex off the table.
And she spent about eight months saying, you know
they were still intimate in other ways and doing like the recent like the homework on her own
self so she could come back to the relationship knowing who she was knowing
what she desired and I believe there's nothing sexier than a partner who
actually really knows what they want in bed. Yeah. So you just got to do a little
some self-care, self-searching here searching here and hopefully he'll be on board with it.
Yeah, thank you.
All right, Mackenzie, thank you for calling in.
I really appreciate it.
Thank you.
It's gonna help a lot of people too.
Thank you.
Yeah, have fun.
Bye. Bye.
I can't say enough how much talking to your partner
about sex often and sharing your vulnerabilities and letting them know where you're at and
how important that is to really change the trajectory of your sex life.
And I'll say it on every show, communication is a lubrication.
And the other thing I want to add to that, I can't say this enough either, is that, listen,
experience is not about, is not a numbers game.
I don't care how many people you sub with it,
I can tell you firsthand,
I was with many people who were like,
oh, that person's up with all these people
and they were not my best lovers.
Maybe they're like, for them it was a numbers game
and they just kind of kept knocking,
now I'm gonna do this one
and I'm gonna sleep with 100 people
and now that means I'm a great lover.
No, it doesn't mean anything.
I've eaten a lot of meals, doesn't make me a chef.
Because I hear this a lot,
people are so nervous that they don't have the experience.
The great news here is that every time you're
with a new partner, it's a new beginning.
You can learn what your partner likes, what you're into,
and the way you're gonna have sex with somebody
with a new partner is gonna be very different
than how you had sex with someone else.
So essentially, every time you're with someone,
you're starting again. And what makes a skilled lover is someone who is open and curious and
honest and vulnerable and pays attention, who likes to give and receive. Those are
all the things that really contribute to be a great lover. Not how
people you've slept with or any really techniques per se. That's all I feel
about that. Let me know what you think. This is from Dan 25 in Washington. Hey Dr. Emily, I'm a married man but I still like to masturbate.
It was a problem in my relationship last year as I wanted to have sex with my wife daily and still
masturbate. Now if I do, which is rare, I feel super guilty. How can I make it so that I don't
feel guilty about it anymore?
My wife never masturbates and says she hates that I do and will occasionally ask if I've
been doing it and if I have, she becomes self-conscious.
All right, Dan, what I'm going to guess from your email extrapolate here is that it sounds
like you've been masturbating in the last year
a lot to porn. Your wife found out or it was a secret and she wasn't okay with it
and now you feel guilt about it and that's a problem. I understand you also
said that your wife hates that you do it and she never masturbates. Now to me
that's a red flag in every relationship. In people who hate masturbating I found have not really masturbated in a way
where they are present and they're doing it to encourage overall sexual health
and wellness because having a healthy masturbation practice is part of being
sexually healthy overall. So I really don't want you to feel this
guilt and shame around masturbation. People masturbate in relationships, they
masturbate out of relationships, and it's important for all of us to have a
healthy practice. So I'm curious first off why your wife never masturbates. Would
she be open to talking to you about why? Has she done it and she didn't like it?
Is it something that she feels would be wrong
and therefore she judges herself about masturbation
so she's judging you?
I don't want you to feel guilty for doing something
that's a healthy practice and that's really quite helpful
also for our own growth as a sexual being.
And so I would love for you to have a conversation with your wife about
the sexual health of your relationship, explaining to her the benefits.
We have lots of great articles on our site about the health benefits of masturbation.
Perhaps you guys could start to listen to this episode together.
Remember what we do here is not this show,
is it's not a typical conversation.
A lot of people aren't talking like this with their partners.
So the reason why I really appreciate your question,
Dan, is because I can't tell you over the years how
many men have emailed and said that they feel shame about it,
that they're in the basement hiding and masturbating,
so no one finds out and then they feel this terrible guilt and
shame after. Some have it because they're hiding from their wife, some have it
because they grew up in an environment where it was shame to ever masturbate.
And I just I would love to all of you and all the listeners and you Dan to
start you know being your own best advocates for masturbation and saying you
know what I'm not gonna perpetuate this guilt and this shame
that's associated with masturbation.
Actually, I want you to understand the benefits.
I mean, it's not just me.
I mean, you could Google it.
Like, there are benefits to it.
It's not evil, wrong, or shameful.
It helps us become more in touch with our bodies.
So I wanna know what kind of sex
are you having with your wife?
Does she enjoy sex? Does she have pleasure? Does she have orgasms? Has she ever talked to you? I
know what we got is that she doesn't masturbate, but what does she do sexually? Is she into your
sex life? I mean, perhaps some mutual masturbation where you're lying side by side and she's
exploring herself and you're exploring yourself might be something to get you guys over that hump
of shame around it.
I don't think that's your first step.
There's still a few talks away from that.
But see where I'm getting with this?
I'm trying to paint for you what a healthy
masturbatory relationship looks like within a relationship.
It could be together, it could be separate.
I mean, I know couples are like,
I'm gonna go upstairs and knock one out.
Okay, babe, I'll be down here finishing work.
Like, that's how it should be. Like, I'm going to the gym for a workout.
Okay, well, I'm just gonna go use this new vibrator I got. Oh, fun. Can't wait to hear
about it when I get home. I mean, that's how it is in my relationships. Like, the guys
I'm dating are like, hey, yeah, you can try that new toy tonight. Text me after. Tell
me how hot it was or let me watch you use that toy. And no, it's not because the guys
I date are in my industry. They know me. They listen to the show. They maybe at first they were
self-conscious, but then they're like, oh yeah, this is so normal and hot and I
love that you're a woman who knows your body and what feels good. So what I'm saying
is this is the world that I want you all to live in that it's literally like
talking about the weather. I'm going to get a workout in. I'm gonna go have an
orgasm and what's for dinner? Okay? Can we all get there?
Dan, you got this. You guys, you're young, into your marriage, you're 25 years old.
Start having these healthy conversations.
It's really important for the health of your relationship, your marriage, kids, whoever's around you.
We need to start having these conversations without shame.
We're going to take a quick break, but first I got to tell you about Promescent.
So, hands down, Promescent makes the best delay spray on the market.
For anyone with a penis looking to delay their orgasms,
this is the spray I always recommend for at least 10 years.
It helps penis owners last up to 64% longer in bed.
It's long lasting.
It doesn't transfer to your partner.
And really it's just perfect for anyone who struggles
with premature ejaculation.
I know it's a bummer, it happens.
I give lots of tips on how to handle it,
but sometimes you just wanna know the sure thing.
You wanna last longer,
but sometimes you just wanna last longer.
That's cool too.
Or if you just wanna practice edging
or having longer sessions, check out Promessin.
Or if you simply just wanna practice edging
or have longer sessions.
They also have this incredible warming arousal gel
for vulva owners, which I love.
Basically, it's like your pre-sex routine.
You just put it on before partnered sex, solo sex,
or even during the day.
And it just gives you this little tingling sensation
as like the blood is rushing.
Cause you remember, orgasm and pleasure
is all about blood flow.
So you rub it in and you will start to feel aroused. Well, it's an arousal gel.
So if you want more pleasure for both you and your partners, go to c-e-n-t dot com slash Emily, or just click the link in the show notes for 15% off.
Okay, we're going to talk to Sarah.
Hi, thanks for calling in.
Oh my goodness.
My husband's 50th birthday is coming up and I really want to knock his
socks off. I've written into you before and expressed to you that he is a experienced
lover and he does a great job of keeping our sex life fresh and keeping me pleased in many,
many different ways. And I've always wanted to please him
as good as he pleases me type of thing.
And I've learned a lot from you.
I've watched him masturbate
and I've like mastered the hand job,
which was very, very exciting for me.
I mean, it took me 14 years of our marriage
to get him off wholly by myself with a hand job
So good. Yeah, okay
So my my next venture is I really want to give him a prostate orgasm, okay
and I feel like it's a big job and
He's always been obsessed with my ass and for a long time
I had a lot of problems with it
and didn't understand it.
And then recently, I've come to accept it and started
to play with him a little bit.
And he really likes it.
Oh, awesome.
OK.
Happy 50th birthday.
Let's find your prostate.
Let's do it.
Let's do it.
But I can find his prostate with my finger,
but I can't stimulate
it enough to make it make him have that place of orgasm. Exactly. So I got this. You got
the beginner anal kit from B-Vibes, right? That's a great present. Oh my god. Good for
you. Okay. Love it. I haven't showed it to him yet, but yeah, I'm thinking I want to try to put a little butt plug in there for
it. That's a great birthday gift. I cannot imagine a better gift.
The problem is, is I'm a very submissive in the bed.
Like he is the dominant in the bed, always been the dominant.
And I enjoy that.
I've always been submissive in any relationship that I've ever had. Very dominant in my personal life, my like professional life, my business.
But in the bed, I'm just like, ravish me, do what you will. And yeah, like, I'm up for
whatever you want. But recently, he's been putting my hand on his throat and doing things
that suggest that he wants me to dominate him.
Yes.
And it kind of freaks me out. I don't know what to do.
Okay. Is it something that you could talk to him about outside the bedroom and just say,
I noticed you put my hand on your neck. Show me what you want. And then you just see what he wants.
And then you could see what he wants. It's good. And you can just kind of practice.
The problem is when I try to talk to him about these things,
he's a little like, yeah, whatever happens, happens.
Even when I asked him, do you want me to put
my finger in your butt, I straight up asked him that.
He said, well, I'm not going to ask you to do it.
But if it happens, it happens.
Okay.
He's not very forward with what he wants.
I've asked him, what are your fantasies?
What do you fantasize about?
Here's what I fantasize about.
What do you fantasize about?
He says, I don't really fantasize.
I'm just concentrating on the moment and on you.
Okay, well, I mean, that could be true, right?
Maybe he doesn't really have fantasies,
but it sounds like he's showing you with little ways
of allowing you to play with his anus
and putting his hand on your neck.
So it sounds like he doesn't wanna talk about it,
but maybe now it's like, I know that you're submissive
in bed, but for all the years you have been submissive,
maybe sometimes you just say,
I'm gonna try this, especially for his birthday.
I'm going to climb on top of him,
I'm gonna put my hand on his neck,
and even though it might not be my main turn on,
I love this man, and let's see where it goes,
because also the act of putting a butt plug into
all of this is stuff that you might just,
once you try it and start doing it
you'll be like oh it doesn't mean it's like because I feel like this whole like
either you're dumb or your sub is so binary you're either or but you could
still be the dumb like taking control the situation without being like lay
down you're my slave like there's ways of just being like how does this feel
like I've had that with partners where I'm like using them up but I'm like I'm
not dominant particularly but I I'm in charge and I'm still, how does this feel? I've had that with partners where I'm using the butt, but I'm like, I'm not dominant particularly,
but I'm in charge.
And I'm still myself, I'm like, how does that feel?
This is what we're doing.
Tonight's about you.
And I'm just kind of, this is your night.
That's what you could say to him too, on his birthday.
This is your night.
You lay out the toys, maybe you could even blindfold him,
get a massage candle, lay out all the butt plugs,
have them all ready to go.
And then you're just playing, but it's okay if you laugh
or it's fun, you haven't done it before.
And I think just the act of you trying
to something different, trying to please him in other ways
is gonna be really, really hot
and a wonderful birthday present.
Thank you so much.
I really appreciate that.
I got the anal lube ready.
It's just, I think it's just the mental block. It is a mental block.
Yeah, the total. And it just, they look so big. They're a lot
big. They seem much bigger than a finger. And so I'm just
worried, you know, I'm just worried about it because it's so
big, you know, like
beginner anal kit. So I would start really, really with the
small one and put a lot of lube on it,
make sure that he's lewd up,
whether he's lying on his back,
you massage him all around,
like his butt, his inner thighs,
just make sure he's really relaxed.
He has to breathe.
And then you can just slowly, like,
how does it feel?
Like talk to him, like, how's that?
Have him breathe.
How is that?
Because it's gonna be a new sensation for him as well.
And they are, but the anus, like you'll find that the hardest,
like going in sometimes is the most uncomfortable,
but you know, again, it's all about breathing,
using lube and going slow.
And then we surprised that what kind of space they could find,
especially if he likes the finger,
he's probably going to be okay even with the small,
definitely start with the small.
And you'd be surprised at what the anus can handle. Well I'm gonna try it and let you know. I mean it's been amazing
what we've been able to accomplish just from letting go and being free with each
other. So it's amazing. Even 15 years in. 15 years in. I mean that's the
thing is that it really is about letting go and being free. It really is.
You are such a great example of that. And I think this is going to be very inspiring for a lot of listeners to see
that even after 14, 15 years, you are still working on it.
And you would say that maybe the secret to it is, is being free and not
judgmental and open it always can get better, right?
It can.
It's absolutely amazing.
Thank you.
Well, thank you for
your call. Happy birthday to your husband. Please let me know how it goes. I'll let
you know how it goes. I love it. Thank you. It was so good to hear from you. Thanks Sarah.
Bye. In every relationship there's an opportunity to grow sexually, try new
things, turn each other on in different ways. Like if your partner's birthday is coming up,
what are you gonna get them?
Right, Sarah's getting a butt plug.
What's one thing that you could do for your partner sexually
that would be exciting for both of you?
That's your challenge.
All right, we have Alex, 24 in Canada,
and he wrote, hey Dr. Emily,
my girlfriend and I have been dating for four years.
She just moved away for a program
and is living with her roommate.
Her roommate and her boyfriend are both into swinging.
My girlfriend finds that really intriguing
and they wanna do sort of a soft swap
with having the girl give the guys oral sex.
Three of us would be in separate rooms
and take turns each night.
Part of me wants this to happen,
but I feel vulnerable for some reason.
I really miss her.
I've talked to the boyfriend and he's super chill about it.
Am I the only one out of the four of us
who isn't naturally into sharing our partners?
How do I know if I should or shouldn't do this?
All right, Alex, I totally get it.
Well, first, vulnerability makes sense in this situation.
Probably do miss your girlfriend.
And then she's telling you about this situation,
which, you know, for many people, like, oh, wow,
you know how great your partner wants to swing,
but that's not for everybody.
And you love her, it's a new scenario,
it makes sense that you would feel vulnerable.
And this can be a risky dynamic in the sense of,
you gotta trust what feels
right for you right now. When you ask if I know if I should or I shouldn't do this, in
this case if it's about swinging or threesomes, it's got to be a hell yes. And if you're not
a hell yes, then we got to stick with the hell no. Now, doesn't mean it can be maybe
a hell yes in the future,
but it sounds like you need some more information.
Maybe you need to meet the couple when you go visit
without the expectation that all of a sudden
you're gonna be splitting up into rooms and swapping.
I mean, that sounds like a lot of pressure
with people you've never met
that she's got a whole relationship with.
So to give you a perspective, she knows them.
She's hanging out with them.
She's seeing it. She's experiencing from their perspective what goes on. And maybe
you need a little bit more information. You need to feel safer. You need to see your girlfriend again.
So stick to your ground. Trust what you're feeling right now and get some more information and see
how you feel once you visit her. But you definitely don't need to make any promises, especially when it comes to your commitment
with your girlfriend and the bond
that you already have right now.
Okay, thank you for your question.
I appreciate it, Alex.
We have Hannah, 23 in Wyoming.
Hi, how are you?
I'm great, how are you doing?
I'm good, it's so nice to talk to you.
Yeah, thanks for doing this.
And thanks for your show.
I love it.
I've been listening to it for probably the past two years
and definitely changed a lot of things for me.
Oh, I'm so happy to hear that.
Well, let me know how I can help you today.
Yeah, so it was about a month ago,
my boyfriend and I, we've been dating for a year. And it
just kind of seemed like during sex, like we weren't connecting, we were still having
sex, but it just wasn't like if there wasn't that much passion or connection there compared
to how it normally is. And I remember an episode, I couldn't find the exact episode,
but you telling a couple like,
just take sex off the table and take the pressure off
and to just like try to connect
in your relationship in other ways.
So we tried to do that and it actually was really,
it was helpful for us,
but we kinda just didn't
know like, what exactly the boundaries are that you set up. And yeah,
that's a, it's a great question. It's something that I, I often tell couples to take sex off the
table when it becomes, sex becomes the problem where either someone's not initiating and the
other one is, or they feel like mismatch the beatos
or someone's just not in the mood or there's problems.
What prompted you to say like,
maybe we should take sex off the table?
What was happening in your sex life?
I don't know really how to explain it
other than we just weren't really connecting.
Like we were having sex, but it was just really basic sex.
There wasn't like, there wasn't that much passion.
It was almost just like we were horny
and wanted to have sex or felt like we needed to have sex
or whatever.
I think many couples could benefit from taking sex off.
And when I say take sex off the table,
what I mean is penetration.
And what I like about sex off the table is
it sort of allows you to get to know each other again.
You're just like, you put the building blocks,
like you're starting to build from the ground up again,
like you're not going right into the passion and the heat.
So you could also experiment with making out
and just having a night where you're kissing and you're exploring, but you're not letting it go past making out and just having a night where you're kissing and
you're exploring but you're not letting it go past making out.
Because that's like, think about when you were first dating and you had the
butterflies in your stomach and you were excited and where's this gonna go next?
But why don't you kind of channel that feelings of discovery again, of curiosity,
of newness, and then you could have a night where you say well let's just give
each other massages,
where one night it's all about you, Hannah,
maybe the next time it's about him,
or you each take 15 minutes and you switch.
And during that process, it's like a really slow process
of him using his hands over your body
and you practicing asking for what you want,
like faster or slower even
with the touch pleasing each other maybe it's just a night of oral sex where it's just about
your pleasure then it switches about his pleasure and so being more deliberate and more present
and more mindful about where you want to go next with each sexual moment.
Okay yeah and I feel like,
like I don't know if it's maybe something kind of in my head,
but we slept together like the first night we met each other
and then we kind of grew our relationship from there.
And that's been like a lot of my experiences in college
were more like one night stands or flings and this is my
first real relationship. Like I feel like since we started with sex and we had so much chemistry
and like when that starts to fizzle out at all like I worry that he's going to think our relationship's not good.
Then I think I probably put that pressure on myself to have sex and have the sex,
have really good sex and sometimes it's just not there.
It's not there.
Even better then for you guys to build now from a place that you kind
of went right to the sex and then the relationship.
And so it sounds like you need some period of really getting to know each other without
just the rushing towards sex.
But also, for you too, if you haven't had that experience, I think it's a really beautiful
thing to just have a night of making out and
touching and kissing and looking into each other's eyes and intimacy that so many times
we do rush through these things and we don't really get to know each other and that you
know I also think that it shouldn't be all about penetration.
So I get your 23, right?
Your 23.
Yeah.
When you think of having great sex or you think of being a good lover, you think, well,
I'm going to, I want to do all the moves and have penetration be really great and exciting
every time and try all these positions.
But what I'm encouraging you and all the listeners to do is to really make sex your own.
Like, make it, so I think it's totally acceptable to have a night of just oral or kissing or
touching and seeing where it goes
role-playing dirty talk
Watching porn together and just putting that even on your calendar like for the next month
You know, maybe once a week or twice a week. You could try something new
You could check out our yes
No, maybe list as well on our site that gives a lot of suggestions
So that's what I'm talking about when I say off the table.
Thank you.
We'll try that.
We'll put it on our calendars.
Please let me know.
You can download our Pleasure Planner as well.
It helps couples plan their pleasure for the month.
It's a free guide on our site.
Thank you, Hannah.
I really appreciate your call.
It's really helpful.
Yeah, thank you so much.
Bye.
Bye.
I love this question because there really is something to be said for slowing everything
down.
And in fact, just go five times slower.
The next time you're with your partner, you can practice going slow with everything, making
out, taking each other's clothes off.
Even if you are having penetrative sex, how can you slow it down?
There's so much of sex that's oriented around orgasm
and we rush everything or we wanna rush to sex
because we think it might not happen
or I won't be as aroused or there's just so many things
about it that really set us up for this very
one dimensional way of thinking about sex
and taking sex off the table and
rebuilding what arousal and attraction and your sex life looks like is a great
practice for a couple at any stage of your relationship.
That's it for today's episode. See you on Friday.
Thanks for listening to Sex with Emily. Be sure to like, subscribe, and give us a review
wherever you listen to the podcast
and share this with a friend or partner.
You can find me on YouTube, Instagram,
Facebook, and Twitter at Sex with Emily.
Oh, I've been told I give really good email.
So sign up at SexWithEmily.com.
And while you're there, check out my free guides
and articles for more ways to prioritize your pleasure.
If you'd like to ask me about your sex life, dating, or relationships, call my hotline
559-TALK-SEX.
That's 559-825-5739.
Or go to SexWithEmily.com slash Ask Emily.
Was it good for you?
Email me, feedback at SexWithEmily.com.