Sperm killers – fact or fiction….

Urban myths and old wives tales are plentiful, especially when it comes to infertility and pregnancy. To help you out on what’s fact or fiction when it comes to the quantity and quality of sperm, ABC has put together this list of 11 Sperm Killing Suspects, covering everything from boxers or briefs to laptops and cellphones.

Food or Sex?

This interesting study from Australia indicates that the majority of men prefer the hamburger over a roll in the sack. Yes, really. Turns out that the old saying ‘the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach’ really is true.

Birth Control Pills and Blood Clots

New research from Europe focusing on oral contraceptives and  blood clots has discovered that some pills are much safer than others. WebMD’s article Which Birth Control Pill Is Safest? provides all the details on this study and their findings.

Want to share?

Men’s Health magazine wants to know How Good Is Your Sex Life? Anyone wanting  to spill the beans on what thrills you (and what disappoints you) – anonymously of course -  just click here to begin answer the survey questions

Take it outdoors!

Forget the old cliché ‘behind closed doors‘. Be a little adventurous this summer and consider these prime outdoor spots for getting busy, plus advice on the best positions in each.

Why have sex: 237 reasons and counting

Two years ago, Texas researchers wanted to go deep inside people’s heads and find out the ‘real’ reasons people have sex. So they asked 2,000 people and ended up with 237 reasons ranging from ‘I was drunk’ to  “I wanted to get closer to God’. That’s just the tip of the iceberg. Other reasons included ‘to help fall asleep’ and  ‘to get rid of a headache’ to ‘it seemed like good exercise’ to ‘someone dared me to’. Interesting answers, but I’m pleased to see that the number one reason, for both men and women was: “I was attracted to the person.”

(image source)

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Find out what works and how with this article Orgasmic Organics: 20 Tasty Aphrodisiacs to Put Sizzle in Your Sex Life over at ecosalon.

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Here’s the top 6 reasons why…

• too tired or needed sleep more than sex
• not feeling well or health problems
• not in the mood
• taking care of pets or children
• work
• watching a TV or a movie

It’s interesting to note that money worries and the economy didn’t make the top 6 list. Seems that “…seventy-nine percent of the sexually active respondents said that the financial downturn hadn’t had the same effect on how often they had sex.”

By the way, Consumer Reports have put together a Sex Education Quiz so that you can find out whether you have your finger on the pulse of how Americans view sex. By taking this interactive quiz, you can see how your answers compare with our nationally representative survey of 1,000 adults.

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Want to know whether a ‘person can think herself to orgasm? Can a dead man get an erection? Is vaginal orgasm a myth? Why doesn’t Viagra help women–or, for that matter, pandas?’

Then meet Mary Roach. Considered one of the most entertaining science writers around, she might just have the answers to all your questions. Mary is the author of last year’s best seller Bonk: The Curious Coupling of Science and Sex.

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Thanks to everyone who entered, especially those who helped list all the singers who sung ‘Behind Closed Doors’. I had no idea that so many singers had recorded it. Here’s what you all came up with – Charlie Rich, Tom Jones, Dolly Parton, Percy Sledge, Bobby Goldsboro, Tommy Overstreet, Diana Ross, Steve Ivey, Don Estelle, Little Milton, Perry Como, Hank Thompson, Loretta Lynn, Ronnie Milsap.

Of course, now I can’t get the song out of my head.

But on to more important things.

The winner of Behind the Bedroom Door, thanks to the faithful random number selector, is…

Shannon Baas

Congratulations Shannon. I’ll be sending an email shortly with instructions on how to claim the book.

As for everyone else, don’t forget that there’s still another book giveaway – Take a ‘Road Trip to the Soul’: Book Review and Giveaway – up for grabs.

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- Behind Closed Doors, Charlie Rich, 1973

Okay, so it’s not something that we freely admit but let’s face it, we all have a little bit of curiosity as to what goes on in other people’s bedrooms. After all, we live in a world that seems to be obsessed with sex. But when it comes to talking about the intimate details of one’s sex life, it’s something that seldom happens, especially among women.

Writer and editor Paula Derrow thinks this is because of fear…

‘fear of being exposed as inadequate, or worse, of being boring. Living in an all-sex-all-the-time culture may be liberating in many ways, but it can also breed shame – shame for not keeping up, for not being invited to the party.’

So Paula set out to open up the door by getting a number of well known women writers ranging in their twenties to their seventies write about, well, their sexual experiences. The result – Behind the Bedroom Door - a collection of extremely frank, truly honest, and often hilarious essays that literally offer exposure to the other side of the bedroom door.

The result – a real page turner of a book that will hold your attention in it’s truly illuminating and deeply honest discussion about sex that’s seldom found. You’ll nod, laugh, despair, and empathize as you read essay topics range from illicit affairs, one night stands, sex toys, and sex addiction to dealing with sex in pregnancy, monogamy, lesbian affairs, and living in a sexless marriage. Nothing is left unsaid in this book that shatters many of the deeply entrenched myths about women’s intimate lives. Covering a wealth and variety of female sexual experience,  Behind the Bedroom Door will leave you questioning conventional notions about women, sex, and sentiment. 

Having read the book, I got to say I was really curious as to how Paula managed to put this book together. So I asked her.

Healthbolt: How did you choose these particular writers and was it easy to persuade them to write about their experiences? 

Paula: I turned to the best writers I know, both from working at Self over the years, and from all the reading I do. Some writers led me to other writers. I also called some favorite writers cold (or their agents), and tried to pique their interest with this juicy topic.

Healthbolt: How in the world did you manage to get these writers to lay open such personal aspects of their lives for public display?

Paula: As an editor at Self and a teacher focusing on personal essay writing, I’m used to pushing writers to go deeper, to search themselves for the real meaning of what they are trying to say.

Healthbolt: Any problems along the way?

Paula: Of course. Given the personal nature of this topic, there were some challenges: Some writers dropped out; Some husbands objected and persuaded their spouses to drop out.

Healthbolt: I guess that’s understandable. After all the writers are not using aliases and are really exposing themselves and often their spouses or partners in these essays. And yet, they were willing to be extremely frank and honest in their essays.

Paula: Mostly because I tried to emphasize that these stories weren’t about betraying a partner or airing dirty laundry or simply about voyeurism – each one is about the women herself – what she feels, experiences, desires and worries about in bed. Making sure that we were keeping the focus on that helped make it easier for each writer to feel comfortable and deliver.

Healthbolt: Well, you certainly succeeded. Anyone reading Behind the Bedroom Door will get a much better understanding on the variety and extreme differences that each of us experience behind the bedroom door. It’s definitely got Healthbolt’s seal of approval.

….

Healthbolt’s got one copy of Behind the Bedroom Door to give away. All you need to do is leave a comment here by 31st January to be in to win.  And when you leave the comment, if you know, tell us who else sung the Charlie Rich song ‘Behind Close Doors’.

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It’s a concept that most of us have difficulty understanding. We ask: How could someone be totally disinterested in sex? Don’t they want to make connections and have relationships with others? Don’t they want someone to love? And what about children and a family?

David Jay has been wrestling with these questions most of his life. Early on, he realized that unlike all his friends, he really had no interest in sex. It must have been a scary revelation for a teenage boy. After all, we live in a society obsessed with sex. A society that highlights people continuously as sexual beings. And here was David with no interest what so ever.

Wanting to make connects with others who felt the same way, David Jay started the Asexual Visibility and Education Network (AVEN) in 2001 to provide a community and a voice for asexuals. Today, he is one of the most prominent voices and is determined to foster a greater general understanding of asexuality by talking sex…

“The problem is not that there is too much discussion about sex; 99 percent of the world really, really likes sex, so it is something that should be talked about openly and honestly. But we need to have more discussion about how people can not have sex and still be happy.”

But it’s not just the general public that Jay and the AVEN are targeting. They are also targeting the psychological community to get asexuality cataloged as a legitimate sexual orientation rather than diagnosed as a disease or mental illness. But with some psychologists looking at asexuality as a sexual dysfunction that could take some time.

(source)

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What causes this is a sensitivity to the proteins in a guy’s semen, a condition which actually has a name: human seminal plasma protein hypersensitivity (SPH). A person can be sensitive to the proteins in the semen of most men, or to a specific guy’s proteins in particular.

Symptoms of an allergy may include localized pain, itching, redness, swelling, hives or even trouble breathing! Most symptoms usually show up within 20 -30 minutes of contact and can last for hours or days. The severity really depends on body chemistry.

How to treat this very unpleasant side effect of lovin’? Condoms, of course, create a barrier (unless you have an allergy to latex, of course) or perhaps a look into desensitization, something your health care professional might be able to help you with.

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It’s rainy here in my parts today – how ’bout you? And rainy days, as you know, are great days to stay in and, well, dance the horizontal mambo.

If you need a little inspiration, check out these articles to get your motor running…

* First off, get an idea for the kind of sex you want today by choosing one of the 7 types of sex all couples need.

* Then, get ideas on how to get things going with 11 Fun (and Sexy!) Things To Do with a Man.

* And finally, when it’s time to get down to business, break out of your missionary position rut by checking out this week’s featured sex position, The Couch Canoodle.

Great stuff here! Happy Sexbolt Saturday, y’all. Have fun!

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Today, I stumbled across a sex position (something you’ve told me you want to learn more about) that is sure to make both of your heads spin (be sure to read the tips included for the most benefit.)

Called “The Mermaid”, all you need is a flat surface, a pillow and a dollop of flexibility. The rest is up to you.

Looks like good stuff, all. Enjoy. And have a Sexy Saturday.

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