Enhancing intimacy in relationships through nonsexual activities and scheduled sexual intimacy can improve connection and anticipation.
Addressing the orgasm gap requires understanding gender differences in desire and promoting education on female pleasure anatomy, such as the clitoris.
Effective communication during sex and in dating profiles can bridge the orgasm gap, promote understanding of sexual anatomy, and lead to meaningful connections.
Deep dives
Valentine's Day Misconceptions and Narrow Views of Love
Valentine's Day, once a feast day in Christian tradition, has evolved into a commercialized celebration of romantic love. The podcast challenges the narrow view of love centered around romantic relationships, highlighting the concept of broader love encompassing various connections. The discussion suggests that emphasizing love's broader spectrum, beyond romantic relationships, is essential for a more inclusive and meaningful observance of Valentine's Day and understanding of love in general.
Myth-Busting and Improving Intimacy in Romantic Relationships
The episode delves into debunking misconceptions in romantic relationships, particularly critiquing the 'you complete me' model. The guest, Maisha Battle, a sex and dating coach, shares insights on enhancing intimacy and connection through five key ways. These methods include exploring nonsexual, scheduling sexual intimacy to build anticipation, acknowledging gender differences in desire, conducting relationship meetings, and dating one's partner to maintain curiosity and novelty in the relationship.
Closing the Orgasm Gap and Importance of Female Pleasure Anatomy
The concept of the 'orgasm gap' is discussed, revealing that women experience orgasms less frequently than their male partners due to various factors. One primary issue highlighted is the lack of understanding around female pleasure anatomy, with a focus on the underexplored clitoris. Cultural norms and gender expectations contribute to this gap, affecting sexual experiences. Addressing these gaps through education, communication, and a shift in societal perspectives is crucial for closing the orgasm gap and promoting gender equality in sexual pleasure.
Understanding Sexual Initiation and Orgasm Education
Sexual initiation is viewed as a diverse experience owing to the various ways individuals engage in sex. Addressing the orgasm gap is being approached positively due to enhanced knowledge about clitoral structure. The importance of educating about the clitoris, with examples like a 3D model named Sheila, emphasizes the need for comprehensive understanding of sexual anatomy.
Enhancing Communication in Relationships and Dating
Effective communication in relationships is vital, yet challenging due to hesitation in giving in-the-moment feedback. Encouraging open dialogue during sex to bridge the orgasm gap emphasizes the significance of personal sexual knowledge. In dating, emphasizing one's values and authenticity in app profiles can lead to meaningful connections beyond superficial criteria, promoting healthy relationship growth.
This episode is part one of our four-part series where we’re counter-programming against the way Valentine’s Day is often celebrated, and examining different kinds of relationships including romantic, friendship, and family.
Today’s guest hews a bit more closely to the traditional Valentine’s Day theme and will do some myth-busting around all the things we tend to get wrong when we talk about romantic relationships.
Myisha Battle is the author of the book, “This Is Supposed to Be Fun: How To Find Joy in Hooking Up, Settling Down, and Everything in Between.” She also hosts the podcasts Down for Whatever, and Dating White. Much of her public work focuses on the early stages of relationships, but in her private practice, she counsels people at all stages, and in all kinds of relationships.
Content Warning: Explicit language and conversations about sex.
In this episode we talk about:
Five ways to improve intimacy and connection in romantic partnership
The nuts and bolts of sex, and how we often get intimacy and sex confused in unhelpful ways
Understanding men’s and women’s cycles to depersonalize issues in sex and relationships
The myth of finding “the one”
The orgasm gap
Bromance
And if you’re looking, tips on how to make finding a partner easier