Things we learned during National Masturbation Month
If you read a lot of sex and relationships news, you’ll probably have noticed that May is National Masturbation Month. A whole month of celebrating the benefits of masturbation and discussing new and interesting ways to spice up your solo sex life.
The origin of National Masturbation Month
The idea of celebrating masturbation was sparked by a controversial incident in 1994. US Surgeon General Jocelyn Elders was speaking at a UN forum, and was asked whether masturbation should be taught as part of the sex education curriculum. Responding that she thought it should, she explained that it was “something that is a part of human sexuality.”
The statement, which we’d see as pretty clear and uncontroversial twenty years later, caused a fair amount of outrage at the time, and Jocelyn was fired by President Bill Clinton.
Of course she’s right – masturbation is a part of human sexuality. And in response to her getting fired, a US-based sex toy company sparked the idea of a regular celebration of masturbation.
At Belle de Soir we’re keen to encourage people to embrace their solo sex life just as much as the sex they have with partners. Over the course of National Masturbation Month we’ve been keeping track of some of the great blog posts and articles on the topic of self-love. Here are five things we’ve learned this month.
Five things we’ve learned about Masturbation Month
1. From TheRedheadBedhead, we learned about some common masturbation myths including the fact that you don’t just have to use a clitoral vibrator in one position!
2. From Debra Hyde at Clitical, we learned that no matter what your age, it’s never too late to discover the delights of masturbation.
3. Over at A Good Woman’s Dirty Mind, we learned some excellent wrist exercises. Useful for gentlemen to stay supple for masturbation, or for the women who’d like to limber up before they give him a treat.
4. From Better after 50 we learned about why it can be difficult for people of older generations to openly discuss masturbation, and how to shake off the shame and embrace your pleasure.
5. (Because we just can’t resist throwing a fun one in at the end) Cara Sutra taught us that geeks often do it better, with an incredibly sexy masturbation fantasy about being naked at a Star Trek party. Can anyone top this for quirky National Masturbation Month fantasies? It’s a tough challenge, but if you can boldly go there…