2018 was not the sexiest of years, but we didn’t let that deter us. Here at Broadly we did our best to explore all the weird and wonderful ways in which people have sex. After all, sex is a miraculous, gross, messy thing that we don’t talk about nearly enough.Championing sex-positive stories that illustrate, inform, and explain is a central part of Broadly’s editorial mission. We’re to explain your deepest and darkest fetishes, commiserate when your bedroom escapades go wrong, and give you guidance and tips on how to maximize your intimate life. From muffing to cuffing, sugar moms to Royal Wedding-themed vibrators—we’ve got you covered.
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After all, if we can’t talk about what goes on in our bedrooms, how can we talk about what goes on in our lives? Here’s some of our favorite sex stories from 2018. Here’s to an even sexier 2019.In this essay for VICE's Privacy & Perception issue, created in collaboration with Broadly, non-binary writer and drag performer Tom Rasmussen talked about their complicated feelings of sexual shame. Through radical openness, they learned that shame is "the things you're told… the things that are written about you." After something shifted in Rasmussen, they learned that the antidote to shame is honesty. Plus, they have some truly incredible stories to share.
Broadly's award-winning sex podcast My First Time explores sexuality through the lens of our firsts, whether it's your first time having sex after leaving a marriage, or your first time having sex after having gender confirmation surgery. In this episode, eating disorder campaigner Laura Hearn talks candidly about what it's like to explore sex and intimacy whilst in recovery for anorexia.In this essay, Broadly staff writer Diana Tourjée writes movingly about her experiences of sex, intimacy, and romance as a trans person before and after transition. From dating straight boys who felt ashamed of their desires to be with her, to the acceptance and love that came when she met her current partner, it's a powerfully honest and at times painful account of dating as a trans woman.
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What happens in our bedrooms is political: Sex isn't just an act between two consenting adults, but a reflection of our wider society. So when University of Pennsylvania professor Kristen R. Ghodsee released a book explaining how women have better sex under socialism, we knew we had to read it. In it, Ghodsee meticulously explains how women quite literally do have better sex under socialism. According to one study Ghodsee cited, East German women had twice as many orgasms as West German women. Gives you pause for thought, right?Broadly's erotic awakening column You Make Me Wanna delves deep into our teen pop culture crushes. In this edition, writer Nell Frizzell explains how her teen crush on Leonardo DiCaprio's Romeo + Juliet developed in unexpected but entirely welcome ways. Unable to date her childhood hero, Frizzell became her very own romantic lead.
Anyone who's ever been in a long-term relationship will be able to attest to the fact that, over time, it becomes hard to get yourself in the mood for sex with your partner. It's not that you're not into them, exactly—it's more that you've eaten that meal a whole lot of times before. Writer Suzannah Weiss had us covered. She explored the wild and wonderful world of libido cures, including the mysterious O-shot, which made big promises.Broadly sex columnist Maria Yagoda has truly gone above and beyond in the line of duty. But can she rebrand Valentine's Day, the most cynical and soulless of all holidays? In this edition of Broadly's Sex Machina column, Yagoda explains why Valentine's Day is best spent in bed, with your hand down your pants, blessedly alone.