"legal" excitement - did anyone else get this?

[bikinksterboy]

On my 18th birthday, I felt incredibly liberated sexually because it meant I could finally send nudes and access porn and do all those other things 100% legally (I live in the US), and it was just like a whole world opened up. I feel kinda weird about this because it might play into the whole idea of waiting/counting down until you're "legal" which is often used in a really gross way toward minors, but like, it really was great for me personally. Am I alone in this?

[Marisha]

Hi bikinksterboy,

I can see where you're coming from. I was one of those kids that didn't wait, and as an adult, I regard those decisions with a bit of shame and regret. It's weird reconciling this idea that, having surpassed the last 24 hours you spent as a minor to the first second you spend as a legal adult, you are suddenly ready, capable, and willing to do "adult" things. How does a person know if they're ready, or what to even expect? If you want my advice, I say stay away from free tube sites like P*rnhub, just because the videos posted to that site aren't regulated as they should be - you have no way of knowing if the people in 'amateur' videos consented to being filmed, consented to sex, or are of legal age. It's a cesspool. Though it might be helpful to Google porn categories to discover your options for exploration. You can also try exploring different types of NSFW content; audiophile porn, written erotica, erotic comics/art/fan art/games, etc. These practices might help you find out what you're *not* into as well, help you create boundaries. If anything gives you a bad vibe, or even just leaves a bad taste in your mouth, blacklist it from your search settings and keep truckin'. One day maybe you'll be able to enjoy paid content, where creators are guaranteed to be of age and consenting (usually - do your research). Hope you have fun!

[bikinksterboy]

that kinda went into a bit of a tangent, but I've definitely gone into all this and know what I do and don't like/want. I have done some things as well before I turned 18 that are probably illegal that I won't go into because of this site's policies, so I have some experience by this point. Your advice is good, just saying in this case it doesn't apply really. I don't necessarily like throwing the entirety of free porn sites under the bus though as there are legitimate, good producers on them. There is always a risk and there do need to be major changes with how they operate, but I don't think it's fair to completely dismiss.

[Marisha]

I see where you're coming from. My comments were just coming from the assumption that now that your world has "opened up," you were maybe a little fresh to some of this stuff. My bad!

To more accurately address your original question, I don't think it's wrong or weird for an adult to consume adult content. It would be shady if you were coming from a place of feeling like you had been groomed? But I won't make that assumption on your behalf.

My suggestion to stay away from tube sites comes from own my personal preference after reading the experiences of people who have had damaging pasts with them, so I do hope people stay conscious about the content they consume. I'm not making a moral judgment of you if you like to use them. It's a pretty common practice.