Hey dreaminglucid -- I totally see where your concern is. I think it may be a good idea to try toy alternatives with devices you may already have or could possibly afford with more ease, like an electric toothbrush or small back massager. You can read about those options in our resource D.I.Y Sex To...

Hey a369 -- How exciting for you! I hope this relationship continues to blossom between you. If it does, it might be a good idea to have this conversation with them directly, because the most important thing will be using a term your friend feels comfortable with. Partner is a very popular gender ne...

Hey MusicNerd -- I'm chiming in to comment on a few things! I HIGHLY recommend removing your ex on social media, if not blocking. When I noticed my ex watching my IG stories and what not, I found myself always checking if he saw it. Sometimes I'd even pander to him specifically with what I posted. U...

Hey Knr -- The folks here at Scarleteen do some tag-teaming when we're answering posts. I felt that some of the stuff posed in your most recent post is better suited for Heather to speak to - is it ok if I ask some questions I had from your posts so far in the meantime? Can you explain a little more...

Hey MusicNerd -- I'm so sorry you're feeling this way. I actually disagree with you - I don't think you're acting irrational, especially if you're finding out that this relationship might have started while you were still with your ex. That's just not cool, to say the very least. I feel comfortable ...

Hey 55 -- most Scarleteen staff and volunteers have some kind of background or expertise in sexual and reproductive health, social work, education and/or social justice. I can't speak for all of us or everyone on this thread, but most of what I know is from being a volunteer sex educator or what I l...

Hey Raffles -- I think that's a great observation about misappropriating the concept of not owing anyone anything. I've also noticed that. It sounds like you ultimately know that you're in the right here and it's others who are not meeting you halfway. I wish there was a more direct solution to this...

Hi Raffles -- I can really relate to what you're going through right now, especially recently. Though most of the ghosting I'm experiencing is in the context of dating, it seems to be taking a similar toll on the both of us as we are both left wondering what we're doing wrong. This is one of those t...

Hey bikinksterboy -- I'm sorry to hear you're thinking about this a lot again. Can you pinpoint why? Has something changed in your life that's making you think more about this or differently than you were? I'm sensing you may be caught up in what you should look like if you claim a particular identi...

Hey bikinsterboy -- even if you're not in a lot of pain or experiencing bleeding, you should definitely avoid anal play of any kind until you know your hemorrhoid is fully healed to avoid prolonging healing and aggravating it enough for it to get worse. This may require checking back in with your pr...

Hey Mixxes -- there's a lot we can talk about here so I'm going to start small. Can you talk more about the conversation you had before with them about the issues you felt were resolved? How was it resolved the next time, and has that remained consistent? I'm asking because you said you were satisfi...

Hey 55 -- when you say the wrong way around, do you mean inside-out? Like, with the reservoir tip inverted? In this case, the risk comes more from the decreased effectiveness of the condom rather than exposure to pre-cum. Condoms work the way they are intended if they are snug. This is why they're r...

Hey Mixxes -- thank you so much for adding some helpful advice in here. If you wouldn't mind, can you speak to feeling nervous about having these conversations? Do you ever feel that way? If someone were nervous about having a conversation like this, do you have any encouragement you can offer? Also...

Hi Raffles -- I wanted to chime in on this, but also wanted to up top say that how I think is not necessarily the right or correct way to go about the issue. Especially because I'm cisgender and present very unambiguously. I almost never get asked about my pronouns, and when people guess they're oft...

Hey 42 -- For what it's worth, I think you are a very self-aware person who has clear interest in learning more about themselves and others both interpersonally and intrapersonally. Though there may be some experiences you might not have that others will in high school, I think it would be very hard...

Hey again -- no worries, there's no pressure to realize anything before anyone posts here. We're happy to walk you through questions. Welcome to the boards!

Hey ManekiNeko -- to answer the question you posed right before this post, yes, I would personally still feel comfortable having a sex life if I didn't have access to pap smears or HPV testing (also keep in mind there was a point in time no one had those period). This is because I view my sexual exp...

Hey ac431 -- questions like this can be a bit difficult to answer because our bodies are all so different. What feels great for someone may not feel so great for someone else. For that reason, I can't really give you specific directions that will direct you to orgasm that are guaranteed to work. Thi...

Hey Mixxes -- you're making some excellent points about the way our society treats people who have STIs. I actually wrote a paper for my graduate degree on the parallels between COVID exposure disclosing and STI status/testing conversations - there are lot! Even though I think catching COVID is more...

Hi again ManekiNeko -- I took a look at your response to my post and the discussion you're having with others. I'm noticing that you seem fixated on STIs, specifically HPV. Can explain why this is has been as distracting and souring as its been for you? Health and safe(r) sex is absolutely something...

Hi ManekiNeko -- unfortunately there is a lot of contradicting information available on the internet, as it hosts everything from personal opinions to hard, proven facts. It's very easy to find information that is willfully incorrect or misinformed. As our site states, manual sex is not entirely ris...

I realized that a lot of my sexuality for a long time was very performative. Though I think experimentation is ongoing and an important part of understanding this part of your identity, I adopted the kinks and indulged the sexual interests of my partners that I was, in retrospect, very uncomfortable...

Hi Hel -- I'm sorry, we typically do not delete accounts either. The exceptions we make are when the user is in physical danger and someone is threating their safety. If looking back is triggering you, consider not reading through them. If you're concerned about identifying information you put up, I...

I take what I call "The Shower." Though I take multiple showers throughout the week, they're usually hurried. Once a week take a long hot shower where I do a little extra - use a hair mask, exfoliate, etc. Lounging around in my robe, using a sheet mask, and putting on my fancier lotion is ...

Hey 42 -- venting is totally ok here as well, we're happy to help in any way that we can even if it's just reading. As intrusive as it's feeling right now, it's clear to me that your teachers are paying enough attention to you to know something is wrong. Even though I don't agree with the way that p...