by yoursl | Jan 29, 2015 | Just For Fun, Taboo Topics |
People often ask me how I find topics to write about for Your Sexy Librarian™ blog posts. The answer is very simple as I am inspired by everyday life. My partner, my brother and my closest friends will often email or text me various links to sex- or taboo-related internet posts they think will interest me. Friends flood my facebook account with an incredible amount of sex-related chatter; my suggested feeds are mostly all about sex now. Even my mother will jot down something she saw or read about that she thinks would make a good subject for me to research. I scan news tickers on television news programs, tune in to health-related broadcasts, read newspaper articles and books about sexual health and sexual issues and scan pharmaceutical literature (required reading for my day job) for ideas as well. Morning radio shows provide me with little blog gems from time to time. I love using Google for idea-gathering as well. Other people, oftentimes newly introduced to me, are a wealth of ideas. At networking events, after people find out what I write about, they sometimes whisper things like, “I’m poly.” or “I married a transgender man.” or “I struggle with an eating disorder.” This week’s blog is all about a recent Saturday night my partner and I shared with some of our closest friends. We hosted our first party together as a couple, which was a pivotal moment in our relationship as it was the first time we introduced our individual friends to each other. We carefully selected the party guests, debating whom would blend together nicely while making...
by yoursl | Jan 22, 2015 | Dating/Relationships, Taboo Topics |
The hours of cold darkness are getting shorter, and, before we know it, grey winter will give way to colorful spring. This time of renewal and rebirth is an excellent opportunity to meet new people. There are online sites for people seeking friendship, friends with benefits, short- and long-term relationships and play partners in certain types of relationships. This blog is devoted to just a sampling of these sites with information about how to use a few sites. Meetup.com is like the five-and-dime variety stores of by-gone years. There really is something for everyone at this site as its purpose is to connect individuals with like-minded others at in-person events. After creating an account, users search for their interests in an area near them, i.e. beer brewing in Indianapolis, and the site suggests groups that match users’ interests, such as “Indy Beer Lovers.” Once a user joins a group and RSVP’s for an event, he or she simply attends the event and meets other people within the group. With Meetup, if a user finds a group is not really to his or her liking, he or she can simply leave that group with no questions asked. There is no limit to the number of groups a user can join, and most of the groups are free to join. Users should expect to pay admission fees or other costs to attend some group events. There are dozens of online dating sites in existence. Your Sexy Librarian personally knows several people who have met their significant others on OkCupid.com. This is a free website with optional paid extras that allows a...
by yoursl | Jan 15, 2015 | Taboo Topics |
The simple dictionary definition of “covenant” is an agreement. Christian faiths take this definition a step further and define a covenant as a contract or agreement between two or more parties and link this term to God’s promise to the human race. A covenant marriage arises from this Biblical promise. The Catholic Church views all marriages as covenants and, therefore, a covenant marriage in the eyes of state law is not necessary in the faith. “A covenant marriage provides an alternative to the traditional marriage contract for couples who oppose no-fault divorce or who want to demonstrate a stronger commitment to marriage,” states the website for The National Conference of State Legislatures. Couples choosing a covenant marriage must receive premarital counseling and, in some cases, marital counseling if problems arise during the marriage. Louisiana was the first state to pass covenant marriage laws in 1997. Arkansas passed similar legislation in 1998, and Arizona followed in 2001. Twenty-one other states have since proposed legislation to allow for covenant marriages, but none of this legislation have passed to date. According to the National Healthy Marriage Resource Center, less than one percent up to three percent of all marriages performed in the United States are covenant marriages. Couples married in a conventional or traditional marriage in one of the states with covenant marriage laws may convert their marriage to a covenant marriage at any time. A traditional marriage occurs when a couple purchases a marriage license, obtains two witnesses to the marriage, and has a state-licensed agent perform the wedding ceremony. A traditional marriage can be easily dissolved through a no-fault divorce....
by yoursl | Jan 8, 2015 | Men's Sexual Health, Sexual Discussion, Women's Sexual Health |
A urinary tract infection (UTI), which is sometimes called cystitis, happens when bacteria in the bladder or kidney multiples in the urine and enters the urinary tract. UTI’s are not necessarily sexually transmitted, but being sexually active can increase the likelihood of developing a UTI due to the transfer of bacteria during sex between the vagina, rectum and urethra. UTI’s are relatively common among both men and women, but women tend to develop UTI’s far more easily than men due to the structure of female anatomy. The distance between a woman’s bladder and the urethral opening is relatively short with the opening in close proximity to the vagina and rectum, making quick transfer of bacteria possible. Brown University reports that an estimated 50 percent to 80 percent of women will develop UTI’s sometime during their life and that 20 percent to 50 percent of these women will have recurrent UTI’s. Common symptoms of a UTI include urine that appears cloudy, presence of blood in the urine, foul-smelling urine, urine with a strong odor first thing in the morning, frequent or urgent need to urinate, pain or burning with urination, needing to urinate with very little fluid coming out, night sweats, shaking or chills, pressure in the lower pelvis and low-grade fever. Men with UTI’s may experience a feeling of fullness in the rectum. A UTI can occur anywhere along the urinary tract. As a general rule, the higher up into the urinary tract that the infection is, the worse the infection will be. The most common type of UTI is iscystitis, or infection or inflammation of the bladder which...
by yoursl | Jan 1, 2015 | Men's Sexual Health, Women's Sexual Health |
Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who is the fairest of them all? The answer depends on whom you are asking. Studies have shown that female dissatisfaction with physical appearance, which is known as poor body image, begins at an early age, sometimes as young as 5-years-old. Brown University defines body image as how we perceive our bodies visually; how we feel about our physical appearance; how we think and talk to ourselves about our bodies; our sense of how other people view our bodies; our sense of our bodies in physical space (which is called kinesthetic perception); and our level of connectedness to our bodies. Let’s use a Your Sexy Librarian blog reader, Savannah, in a real world explanation of the above definitions. Savannah told me that she never felt like a small person physically because she feels like she takes up quite a bit of space in a room when she enters it. Savannah is of average height, with amazing curves, a perfectly proportional body and better-than-average breasts. Savannah said she feels her body size is not the definition of “small.” Savannah told me she has never liked having her photograph taken, which is why very few photos of her exist. Recently, someone took a photograph of Savannah surrounded by a group of people. When Savannah saw that photograph, she said she was absolutely shocked at how small she looked when compared to those in the photo with her. Savannah told me that she has started to pay more attention to her body size compared to others around her and quickly accepted that she is indeed a small...
