Illustration by Austin Gilmore
Sex does a body good
Kellie Robertson's boyfriend lives roughly 750 miles away in the small Texas town of San Marcos. Not surprisingly, the two don't exactly get to see much of each other. But every month or so, the Hugoton junior will find the time and money for the plane trip south, or he'll venture up to Lawrence, and they'll do what many young couples do in their situation: They'll have lots of sex.
"Fall break, we barely left the room," she says with a chuckle.
And afterward, when they're saying goodbye and preparing for another month of sleeping alone, Robertson says she feels healthier — emotionally, mentally and physically—than she was before the visit. Part of the positive feeling comes from simply seeing her boyfriend after such a long time without him, but part of it, she says, comes from the sex, itself.
"The cliché is that it's sexual frustration," Robertson says. "But it's more tension and stress that have the opportunity to be released."
The notion of sex being good for us isn't unheard of. Few would dispute its value as exercise, for example, and people also generally accept it as an effective stress reliever. But for the most part, whatever good comes out of sex is overshadowed by the possible negative consequences associated with it, says David Hall, executive director of the American College of Sexologists. Put another way, flip through a typical high school sex ed book, and you'll probably see entire chapters devoted to unplanned pregnancies and STDs, but look for information about the benefits of orgasms, and you'll likely come up empty.
Hall says the powers-that-be in American society, political and religious leaders to name a few, enforce a restrictive attitude about sex as a means of social control. "If you can control the basic drives, you can control the people," he says.
But in doing so, he says, they do a disservice to Americans not only because of the shame they foster in peoples' attitudes about sex, but because expressing sexuality is positively associated with good health, and not just in the ways you would typically expect.
Sure, there's the stress relief aspect and exercise. Robertson, for example, compares sex to running, because they both have a therapeutic effect for her. She also compares to it a "full day of manual labor like digging a ditch." Jim Flaigle, Wichita senior, agrees that sex is a full-body work out, and says afterward, he feels a "cathartic" sense of release.
"There's the endorphic rush," he says. "It's a pleasant tiredness."
It's fairly obvious sex is a workout, and anyone who's had an orgasm knows it relieves stress. What's less obvious and what many people don't know are the other aspects of health sex has been related to.
According to studies cited in a Planned Parenthood White Paper, a research paper on the organization's Web site, PlannedParenthood.org, sex has been positively linked with how long people live and the probability that they won't succumb to heart disease or stroke, and that's even when other risk factors are taken into account. Researchers have also speculated that chemicals associated with arousal and orgasm in women can play a part in preventing breast cancer.Also, for women,studies have supported the idea that sex can help regulate menstrual cycles and relieve menstrual cramps.The paper connects everything from sleep to pain tolerance to prostate health with peoples' abilities to express themselves sexually.
As far as mental health is concerned, the paper says people who are getting laid seem less likely to be depressed, overly stressed or affected by low self-esteem.
Whether these studies will hold up with time remains to be seen, but many people now don't even know the research is out there. According to the paper, the bulk of sexual research is still focused predominantly on problems and dysfunctions, and the true health benefits of sex won't fully be discovered if society continues in that direction. Neither Robertson nor Flaigle were familiar with the research, and both agreed that if the studies were valid, they needed to be part of the discussion. Flaigle went so far as to say that the taboo attitude society endorses about sex could actually contribute to the health problems associated with sex, such as sexually transmitted diseases and unplanned pregnancies. "Young people go out and try to experience it just for spite," he says.
Judy Guerin, a founding board member of the Washington D.C.-based Woodhull Freedom Foundation, which is devoted to the idea that sex is a fundamental human right, agreed that "youth who are more informed make more responsible decisions." But, she says, the culture of sexuality in our society is one of shame, and this affects youth as well as adults.
Hall says his personal favorite anti-sex line is, " 'Sex is evil; save it for somebody you love.'" Robertson states it even more succinctly, drawing from her small-town Hugoton roots.
"Sex is the devil there," she says simply.
"Sex is the devil there," she says simply. It just happens to be a devil that could make people happier and healthier.
Doing it Fearless
Fearless Sex: A Babe's Guide to Overcoming Your Romantic Obsessions and Getting the Sex Life You Deserve
Dr. Joy Davidson, licensed sex therapist and former sex columnist for Playgirl and Men's Fitness, has produced a new book of erotic proportions. in Fearless Sex, Dr. Joy convinces you to strip down your sexual inhibitions and pre-conceived notions and to embrace the sexual beast that dries mortal in most people. Sue Johanson,
host of Talk Sex on the Oxygen Television Network, says, "This book is fun, friendly and flippant, and I highly recommend it."
Davidson uses a refreshing blend of real-life, attention-grapping anecdotes and in-your-face sexual counsel to show readers the power of their own sexual identity. Let Dr. Joy share with you how to explore, explore your fantasies and to fulfill your sexual potential.
Fearless Sex is available at Borders or at amazon.com. Brian Wheatley
Brian Wacker
When checking someone out from the opposite sex, often one will imagine what this person looks like naked, especially when men are doing the checking out. So when the crucial time comes to
do the deed, certain expectations are already lined up as to how this person should look naked.
Whether it be penises or breasts, the saying "size doesn't matter" will come up to deal with insecurities. This saying might be something said in hopes of making the other person feel better, but it also might not actually matter. Kelly Dirks, Derby junior, says that penis size doesn't matter. On the other hand, some women say this to avoid talking about the let down they have just experienced. "I'm trying to bolster your ego and be
nice about it," Anne Grantski, Omaha senior, says. "Size doesn't matter" is a phrase used by women when talking to men so if a guy says this he probably means just what he says. "There's more important things in life than breast size," says David Starkweather, Omaha senior. "But if a girl says that to me, I would feel inadequate because I know she is lying out of her ass."
— Jayme Wiley
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11.11.04 Jayplay
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