Did You Know?

What Is Micropenis?

Micropenis is a medical condition in which an individual has an atypically small penis. Although a universal definition for micropenis has not been agreed upon, one proposed definition is a penis of an adult man that is 9.3 cm or 3.66 inches or less when stretched (while flaccid). The average penis length for an adult man is 13.24 cm or 5.21 inches when stretched.

What Is Micropenis?

The Effects of Nursing on a New Mother’s Sexuality

The SMSNA periodically receives and publishes ‘guest editorials.’ The current article was submitted by Mia Barnes, a freelance writer and researcher who specializes in women's health, wellness, and healthy living. She is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Body+Mind Magazine.

Breastfeeding is a beautiful way to nourish your child and strengthen the mother-baby bond. It can also affect your sex life and sexuality. Prior to giving birth, breasts were an erogenous zone meant for your and your partner’s pleasure. Now, they have more than one function, which can feel confusing. In addition, surging hormones from breastfeeding can change how a woman’s body reacts to sexual stimulation.

The Effects of Nursing on a New Mother’s Sexuality

A Medical Role for Vibrators

By Rainey Horwitz, MS

Vibrators are gaining attention among physicians for their therapeutic roles in medicine. Despite the long medical history of therapeutic pelvic massage around the world, personal massagers like vibrators are just entering mainstream conversation and gaining recognition as a pelvic health therapy by Western medicine. This is likely connected to sexual stigma and taboo surrounding imagery and discussion of vibrators. Vibrators were initially used in medical offices during the industrial revolution of the early 1900s when electrical power entered private establishment. Vibration was claimed to be a treatment for gastrointestinal and lymphatic issues, as well as supposed energetic “rejuvenation” remedies. Following their appearance in pornography in the 1920s, vibrators became tied to sexual deviancy and were no longer recognized for their potential therapeutic roles (Horwitz, 2020).

A Medical Role for Vibrators

How Can One Use Sex Toys Safely?

Sex toys and tools such as vibrators, dildos, vaginal dilators, anal toys, penis rings, and penis sleeves can enhance a solitary or partnered sexual experience. However, it is important to use them safely. By using sex toys responsibly and keeping them clean, you can avoid passing on sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and/or blood-borne infections (from sex toys that may create small tears in the skin and draw blood).

How Can One Use Sex Toys Safely?

How and Why a Woman’s Libido Shifts During Pregnancy

The SMSNA periodically receives and publishes ‘guest editorials.’ The current article was submitted by Mia Barnes, a freelance writer and researcher who specializes in women's health, wellness, and healthy living. She is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Body+Mind Magazine.

Many women experience ebbs and flows in their libidos throughout their pregnancies. While one woman may have an increased sex drive, another can lack desire altogether. An increased or decreased libido is normal and can vary by the woman and even by pregnancy. Some women experience a high sex drive in their first pregnancy and a low one in their second. Here are some reasons why.

How and Why a Woman’s Libido Shifts During Pregnancy

How Might OCD Impact a Person's Sex Life?

Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) is a chronic mental health condition that involves recurring unwanted thoughts or impulses (known as obsessions) that lead to repetitive behaviors (compulsions). These obsessions and compulsions can interfere with a person’s day-to-day life and may cause relationship problems, occupational issues, and significant emotional distress.

How Might OCD Impact a Person's Sex Life?

What Is Provoked Vestibulodynia?

Provoked vestibulodynia (PVD) is a condition that can affect people who have vulvas, causing painful sex. It is a form of vulvodynia (pain in the vulva, or external female genitalia) that is characterized by pain with touch or pressure on the vulvar vestibule, which is the skin by the entrance to the urethra and vaginal opening.

What Is Provoked Vestibulodynia?

What Is Edging and Why Do People Do It?

Edging is the practice of stopping sexual stimulation before reaching orgasm to prolong a sexual experience. The term stems from the concept of approaching the metaphorical “edge” of orgasm but stopping before going over the edge.

What Is Edging and Why Do People Do It?

What Women Need to Know About Pain During Sex

The SMSNA periodically receives and publishes ‘guest editorials.’ The current article was submitted by Mia Barnes, a freelance writer and researcher who specializes in women's health, wellness, and healthy living. She is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Body+Mind Magazine 

Pain during sex, or dyspareunia, is often treatable and very common among women. You could experience pain during intercourse, and you shouldn’t be embarrassed or afraid to discuss it with your doctor. It may feel like a burning sensation or a more profound physical pain. Some common causes of discomfort during penetration can be dryness, irritation, injury or inflammation. Here are some other reasons you could experience pain during sex.

What Women Need to Know About Pain During Sex

What Is Movember?

Movember is an annual awareness-raising event that occurs every November. It involves growing a moustache throughout the month to bring attention to men’s health issues including prostate cancer, testicular cancer, and men’s suicide. The name “Movember” is a combination of the words “moustache” and “November.” Here is some information on the important men’s health issues that are addressed in Movember.

What Is Movember?

How Can Overly Tight Pelvic Floor Muscles Impact One’s Sexual Health?

The pelvic floor is a group of muscles that holds the pelvic organs in place. A strong pelvic floor is associated with good sexual outcomes. People may encounter sexual health issues if their pelvic floor muscles become too weak, including pelvic organ prolapse or urinary or fecal incontinence during sex. On the other hand, sexual problems can also arise when the pelvic floor muscles are too tight.

How Can Overly Tight Pelvic Floor Muscles Impact One’s Sexual Health?

What is a Stim Patch, and How Might it Help Premature Ejaculation?

A stim patch is a small (disposable) electrical device that can be worn on the perineum (the area between the anus and the scrotum) to delay premature ejaculation. It works by delivering electrical stimulation to the body that may help men contract the muscles of their pelvic floor and, in doing so, postpone ejaculation during sexual activity.

What is a Stim Patch, and How Might it Help Premature Ejaculation?

What Is the P-Shot? Does It Actually Work?

The P-Shot, also known as a platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injection, is being tested as an experimental therapy for erectile dysfunction (ED). It involves taking a sample of the patient’s blood, using a centrifuge to separate out the PRP from the other components of blood (i.e., red blood cells and platelet-poor plasma), and injecting the PRP into the penis to promote the growth of penile tissues.

What Is the P-Shot? Does It Actually Work?

What Is Cybersex?

Cybersex is any type of sexual activity that occurs virtually between two or more individuals including sexting, sharing sexual images or videos with a partner, webcam sex, and chatroom sex. Although some cybersex experiences include visual elements such as photos or video, other cybersex activities involve describing sexual fantasies or scenarios in written or spoken words. In most cases, cybersex involves real-life masturbation by one or all participants.

A shirtless man sits on the edge of bed covered in a sheet. He wears black virtual reality glasses and holds his hands in a questioning manner.

What Are the Risk Factors for Penile Fracture?

Although it is rare, penile fracture is possible when a man experiences trauma to his erect penis, sometimes during rough sexual intercourse. Since there are no bones in the penis, penile fracture is different from other types of fractures. It occurs when the corpora cavernosa (two columns of spongy tissue in the penis that fill with blood during an erection) are damaged due to a sudden blow or a situation in which the erect penis is bent forcefully.

A hand is pictured holding a yellow banana which is broken in half.

Do ED Medications Increase One’s Risk of Vision Problems?

Phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors (PDE5i) are oral medications used to treat erectile dysfunction (ED) such as Viagra, Cialis, and Levitra. They are one of the most frequently prescribed medications in the U.S., and in 2020, an estimated 20 million monthly PDE5i prescriptions were filled within the country.

Do ED Medications Increase One’s Risk of Vision Problems?

Is Cycling a Risk Factor for Erectile Dysfunction?

Some studies have suggested there may be a relationship between cycling and erectile dysfunction (ED) in men. However, before you panic and sell your bicycle, take into consideration that, at this time, the evidence on the topic is still limited and conflicting. The potential association between cycling and ED is likely more nuanced than one might expect. What’s more, there may be ways for cyclists to protect themselves against ED. Although this article is not a substitute for advice from a medical professional, it may help clarify some points regarding cycling and ED.

Is Cycling a Risk Factor for Erectile Dysfunction?

The Effect of Pornography on Sexual Satisfaction

Pornography use has become more prevalent in recent years due to the ease of access of readily available free content on porn streaming websites. By some estimates, over half of all men and one-third of all women watch porn at least once a year. Nevertheless, it remains somewhat controversial, and sexual medicine experts have debated the possible role of frequent porn viewing in sexual dysfunction, relationship problems, and sexual dissatisfaction.

The Effect of Pornography on Sexual Satisfaction

Ideas for Overcoming Sexual Boredom as a Couple

Sexual boredom, or feeling bored with the sexual aspects of life, can be a common phenomenon, particularly in long-term relationships. Sometimes, even when a romantic relationship is otherwise healthy, the sexual aspect of it can feel predictable, stale, and rote.

Ideas for Overcoming Sexual Boredom as a Couple

The Facts About Vaginal Health and Feminine Hygiene

The microorganisms that inhabit the vagina are known as the vaginal flora or microbiome. Maintaining a healthy vaginal microbiome is important because it can help prevent infection, support fertility, and improve a woman’s quality of life. Unfortunately, not all products and behaviors promoted as “feminine hygiene” have a beneficial effect on the vaginal flora. The following are facts on vaginal health and feminine hygiene to help you sort through some of the most common misconceptions.

The Facts About Vaginal Health and Feminine Hygiene

What Can Cause Orgasm Difficulties in Women?

Orgasm is part of the sexual response cycle for both men and women. It is the point during sexual response in which a person’s blood pressure, heart rate, and breathing reach their maximum rate, along with transient peak sensations of intense pleasure, creating an altered state of consciousness. Typically, orgasm is described as a sudden release of sexual tension accompanied by involuntary muscle contractions, especially those in the pelvic region and around the sexual organs. Women experience contractions in the uterus and vagina, and men have contractions in the muscles at the base of the penis, usually resulting in ejaculation.

What Can Cause Orgasm Difficulties in Women?

Penile Implants From a Partner's Perspective

One of the most frequently asked questions among people who are considering getting a penile prosthesis (implant) to treat erectile dysfunction (ED) is: How will my partner feel about it? Fortunately, research indicates that partners’ responses to penile implants are generally positive and partner satisfaction rates are high.

Penile Implants From a Partner's Perspective

What Are the Most Common Sexual Fantasies?

Sexual fantasies are mental images that trigger arousal or sexual excitement in an individual. Although cultural, societal, and religious influences have often lent a certain taboo to sexual fantasies, they are actually quite common and occur universally.

What Are the Most Common Sexual Fantasies?

What Is Jelqing, and Does It Actually Work?

The term “jelqing” refers to a set of penis stretching exercises that some believe can make the penis bigger. Although the practice has gained attention and popularity in blogs and internet forums in recent years, there is no scientific evidence that it is an effective way to permanently increase the size of one’s penis. In fact, in some cases, jelqing may actually cause damage to the penis, so it is a good idea to get all the facts before setting off to try it.

What Is Jelqing, and Does It Actually Work?

The Sex-Positivity Movement: What it Means to Be Sex-Positive

You may have heard references to “being sex-positive” or “the sex-positivity movement” in popular culture. Various celebrities have brought attention to this movement by speaking out about their beliefs and personal experiences regarding sexuality, sexual health, body positivity, “slut-shaming,” and sexual assault.

The Sex-Positivity Movement: What it Means to Be Sex-Positive

Why Does Sex Hurt?: A Guide for Figuring Out What Might Be Causing Painful Sex

Painful intercourse, or dyspareunia, can be a frustrating, sometimes alienating problem. Many people consider sex to be a private matter and may be reluctant to talk about sexual pain or dysfunction with their health care providers. Nevertheless, because dyspareunia can be caused by injury, an underlying medical condition, or psychological reasons, it is a good idea to consult a health care professional if you experience frequent or long-term pain during intercourse. In the meantime, the following guide may provide a good starting point for determining why sex hurts.*

Why Does Sex Hurt?: A Guide for Figuring Out What Might Be Causing Painful Sex

What Is the Average Penis Size?

If you have ever wondered how your penis compares to others in terms of size, you are not alone. Many men are curious to know how their penises stack up compared to the average. Unfortunately, general curiosity can sometimes give way to full-on obsession and anxiety about penis size. This can be an unhealthy and often unnecessary fixation, especially because most men who think their penises are too small have perfectly normal-sized penises.

What Is the Average Penis Size?

Outercourse

Outercourse is a word used to describe sexual activities that do not involve penile-vaginal intercourse. It is a highly subjective term that is open to interpretation, so couples who choose to engage in outercourse should make sure that they are on the same page about which activities they want to include in (or exclude from) their sexual experiences. The following guide on outercourse can help you wrap your head around the concept.

Outercourse

The Facts on Pelvic Organ Prolapse

Pelvic organ prolapse (POP) is a type of pelvic floor disorder that can cause painful and unpleasant symptoms for women, including dyspareunia, which is painful sex. It is estimated that about one-third of all women experience a pelvic floor disorder at some point in their lives, ranging from urinary or fecal incontinence (leaking of urine or stool, respectively) to POP. Here are the facts on pelvic organ prolapse.

The Facts on Pelvic Organ Prolapse

Q&A on “Blue Ball” Syndrome

Perhaps you have heard the term “blue balls” used to describe sexual frustration in people with male genitals. Still, you may wonder, what exactly is “blue ball” syndrome? Does it really exist? If so, why does it happen? The following is a comprehensive guide on all you need to know about “blue balls.”

Q&A on “Blue Ball” Syndrome

Treating Peyronie’s Disease Without Surgery

One notable symptom of Peyronie’s disease is the formation of plaques just beneath the skin of the penis. When plaques develop, the penis loses some of its flexibility when erect. The result is a curve that can make intercourse quite difficult.

Treating Peyronie’s Disease Without Surgery

Self-Injectable Testosterone Now Available

Men with certain types of hypogonadism (low testosterone) can now administer their own testosterone injections at home, bringing their levels of this hormone into normal ranges.

Xyosted, which delivers testosterone therapy in a special one-use device, was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in October 2018.

Self-Injectable Testosterone Now Available

Prostate Cancer’s Physical and Emotional Effects May be “Reciprocal”

Undergoing prostate cancer treatment can leave men both physically and emotionally spent. Common approaches like surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, and hormone therapy often have side effects, including problems with urinary and bowel function, sexual function, and fatigue.  The stress of a cancer diagnosis and feeling unwell, along with concerns about meeting obligations and planning for the future, may be overwhelming.

Prostate Cancer’s Physical and Emotional Effects May be “Reciprocal”

Sexuality of Older Cancer Survivors

In terms of sexuality, older cancer survivors are not much different from their cancer-free counterparts. But they may be more likely to feel dissatisfied with their sex lives, according to the results of a 2016 study.

Sexuality of Older Cancer Survivors

A Third of Cervical Cancer Survivors Feel Sexual Distress

For cervical cancer survivors, it can be difficult to adjust to changes in sexuality. Pain, poor lubrication, and anxiety are common issues, and it takes time to feel comfortable with sex again. For some women, the situation causes great distress. In fact, a recent study published in the journal Psycho-Oncology estimates that about a third of cervical cancer survivors feel sexual distress.

A Third of Cervical Cancer Survivors Feel Sexual Distress

Prostate Cancer and Sex: Questions to Consider

Prostate cancer and its treatment can have a profound effect on a man’s sex life. There are physical issues to cope with (like erectile dysfunction and fatigue) as well as psychological and emotional ones (like depression and relationship changes). None of these are easy.

Prostate Cancer and Sex: Questions to Consider

Veterans with PTSD More Likely to Have Sexual Dysfunction

It’s not unusual for men and women returning from war to experience post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) – ongoing feelings of stress and anxiety that occur after a traumatic or frightening event. Recently, a team of experts from the United States studied the sexual health of veterans with PTSD.

Veterans with PTSD More Likely to Have Sexual Dysfunction

Medications for BPH: Are Two Drugs Better Than One?

When a man has benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) – an enlarged prostate – he may have trouble with urination. Lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) happen because the tissue in the prostate gland grows inward. Sometimes, it presses on the urethra, making it difficult for urine to leave the body.

Medications for BPH: Are Two Drugs Better Than One?

TRT Doesn’t Cause or Worsen Enlarged Prostate Symptoms

Testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) doesn’t appear to cause or worsen lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) or an enlarged prostate, according to a review of past research.

An enlarged prostate – also called benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) – is common as men get older. In fact, about half of men in their fifties have an enlarged prostate.

TRT Doesn’t Cause or Worsen Enlarged Prostate Symptoms

Feeling Depressed After Sex

The condition is called postcoital dysphoria (PCD) and it’s not widely understood. Women with PCD may feel depressed, anxious, or argumentative, even if they enjoyed the sexual encounter.

Suicide Risk among Genitourinary Cancer Patients

For some of us, taking care of our cancer patients involves the physical care. We might recommend surgery for our prostate cancer patients. Or we might order a certain chemotherapy regimen for a woman with ovarian cancer. Of course, we know that their mental health is extremely important, but we tend to focus on our area of expertise.

Suicide Risk among Genitourinary Cancer Patients

Hormonal Changes in Expectant Fathers

New research suggests that fathers-to-be experience declines in certain hormones when their partners are expecting a baby.

Hormonal changes are expected in pregnant women. But scientists from University of Michigan wanted to take a closer look at what changes men go through during their partner’s pregnancy.

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