Ah, spring. The time of year when flowers bloom, romance blossoms and you begin to notice the piles of crap you’ve accumulated over the frigid cold months. It’s also a time of purging all those stale winter habits of which we’ve grown oh-so-accustom. That’s right guys, it’s time for a little spring cleaning! Grab a feather duster in one hand and a dildo in the other and get rid of those last traces of hibernation. Here are a couple of ideas to get you thinking about what to keep, what to ditch and what to add to the top of the priority list.
Sex Without Lube
The female body is so cool. Not only do we have an organ that’s only purpose is to emanate pleasure, our bodies take care of lubing themselves up when we get turned on. How hot is that! Going au natural can work great for some people, but even the wettest of women tend to dry out a little after a while. And there is nothing pretty about trying to get it on Sahara style. Sure, it hurts, but even worse, it can cause small tears in the vagina, which make STI transmission nice and easy. Plus, super dry sex can cause condom breakage – a recipe for disaster when coupled with easier STI transmission.
Fortunately, it takes about all of three seconds to remedy the dryness. Two drops of lube and boom, you’re back in business with hot, wet fucking! So add this one to the list and let’s banish the painfully common practice of sex without lube.
*Just a reminder: Stick with water- or silicone-based lubes. Oil-based lube can irritate the vagina and latex lubes can disintegrate condoms/dental dams/gloves. If you are using silicone toys, be sure to go with water-based lube, as a silicone-on-silicone relationship just doesn’t work out.
Avoiding STI Screenings
Time to get rid of this one for sure. I don’t care how busy you are – just do it. Go into the new season knowing exactly what’s what with your body. Even the lowest risk of women should be getting annual pelvic exams, which means there is no reason not to just add on a few extra tests. You are in the stirrups already! STI testing can be a very scary and nerve-wracking experience for many people, but with spring cleaning, we are tossing out those panicky feelings to make room for the responsible ones that we need to keep on top of our sexual health. If cost is an issue, check out local free and sliding scale clinics.
Sticking With Your Routine
You know you best, it’s true. You also know what works for you and how you like to get off. You know it so well, it’s like clockwork. You could do it in your sleep. In fact… you even might have. As nice as it is to know exactly what gets you going, doing the same thing on repeat – day after day, year after year – gets old fast.
Pause the boring button and start the diversification process with by adding little variations to your play. This could be anything from spending more time on foreplay, to forgoing the bed and fucking on the floor, to adding a third (forth, fifth…) participant to the mix.
Big or small, a change can reinvent the mundane instantly. It’s easy to forget that no matter how much you enjoy one thing, it doesn’t mean that the one thing is the do all and say all when it comes to your pleasure. Toss the same old to the curb this spring and get ready to change it up as the weather changes.
Be it a major clean up or a light organizing, spring cleaning is the perfect time to take a look at what you’ve got, what you want, and what you can or should do without. Use the excuse to really deep clean your sex life and figure out what works and what will hold you back from enjoying the warm mild months to their fullest.
Next stop, summertime!
J.D. Bauchery
