This is why what we think we know about sex can be full of misconceptions.

1. Sexual attraction should happen immediately

While it sometimes does happen this way, attraction developing as you get to know the person better is common. Sexual attraction depends on different areas besides just physical appearance; having shared interests and having an emotional connection are just a couple of the areas that can make a difference. Sometimes it’s important that multiple factors are being focused on, in order to feel fully sexually attracted to someone.

2. Pain and discomfort during sex are normal

Although it’s normal for sexual attraction to develop gradually, it’s not normal for sex to hurt. Painful sex can come from a few different things and should be looked into by a gynaecologist or doctor you feel comfortable with.

Slight discomfort during sex could come from needing more lubricant. There are a couple of myths around lubricant too; firstly, that it’s not normal to use it and good sex shouldn’t need extra lubricant, which is completely untrue. 

Another myth about lube is that it isn’t safe. While this is also untrue, it’s important to make sure the lubricant being used doesn’t contain any ingredients that irritate your body. And when picking out a lubricant, a water-based one is usually best.

3. Sex should always end in an orgasm, otherwise it isn’t good

Of course, this isn’t to say that it’s not great when all partners orgasm during sex, it just means it’s okay if it doesn’t happen every time. Unfortunately, It’s common to hear people say they feel bad if an orgasm isn’t reached by one or all people involved, but the pleasure of sex comes from the whole experience, not just one part at the end.

4. Men care more about sex and orgasms than women

This is possibly the oldest and most common misconception. Although it’s fine if an orgasm isn’t reached at the end of every sexual experience, it’s not okay to assume women don’t need to orgasm because they don’t care about it as much as men do. This idea is deep rooted and still very much a belief for some, even though the truth is both women and men can have different sex drives, and women care just as much about orgasms as men do.

The misconception around this means an orgasm gap for women, and it’s quite a big gap, specifically for women in heterosexual relationships, with only 65% orgasming during sex. This is compared to 86% of lesbian women orgasming and 92% of heterosexual men orgasming during sex. This gap for heterosexual women could come from factors like not enough foreplay or miscommunication between partners. But, before being able to properly communicate with your partner about how to help you orgasm, you need to know your body properly first. This will help with better communication.

5. It’s hard to contract an STD and can only happen from lots of casual sex

Anyone can contract an STD, even the person who you swear you trust to have gotten tested recently with a negative result (even though they never actually showed you the negative test). The amount of sexual partners you have really doesn’t matter, it takes just one person to contract an STD. Some STDs are easy to get rid of, others, not so much. But either way, no one really wants to be dealing with an STD of any kind, so make sure you’re taking precaution and practising safe sex.

These are just 5 of the many misconceptions surrounding sex and sexuality, so questioning and fact-checking what you hear is never a bad idea. The next time someone tries to tell you that women don’t care about sex or that lubricant is only for ‘bad’ sex, maybe you can be the one to educate them.

The post Explaining Some Sex Misconceptions appeared first on The Third Eye.

As Faculty of Health Sciences students, MHSA’s members strive towards health promotion and disease prevention. It was hence vital for us to celebrate the European Week of Sport through an article which explores the physical, mental and emotional health benefits of various forms of exercise for specific demographics.

Wii Sport in Sedentary Lifestyles

Millennials and Gen Zs are notoriously known for their screen time, but this might not as bad as you think!

Active gaming such as Wii Sport allows for an active lifestyle by bridging screen time and physical activity. Various Wii utilities promote cardiovascular fitness, muscle strength, and coordination.

The key factor that makes Wii Sport ideal towards combatting a sedentary lifestyle is the audio-visual feedback of the featured games. They have been shown to increase the individual’s motivation while achieving a cardiovascular response that can reach that of traditional physical activity.

Group Exercise in Performance Enhancement

We all have that one friend who cannot survive without his or her “Boo Thang”. This might not be too bad of an attribute when working out as a group. Group exercise has been shown to reap superior results due to factors absent in individual workouts.

Group classes offer a social aspect to exercise, whether it be attending with your “Baby Cakes” or forming new friendships. Exercise partners often motivate individuals to train frequently. Friendly competition also encourages members to train harder so to outperform one another.

This does not only apply to the average Joe though! Group exercise has shown to offer a significantly higher improvement in walking ability and balance of stroke rehabilitation patients, in comparison to one-to-one exercise sessions.

Tai Chi in Elderly Health

It’s Tai Chi, not Chai Tea!

This exercise encompasses a self-paced gentle exercise and stretching choreography with positions which flow from one to the other without pause, ensuring that the body is in constant motion.

Balance, coordination, strength, flexibility, and concentration are enhanced when practising tai chi. The increase in the quality of these factors has shown to benefit the elderly demographic. Incidence of falls is decreased and frailty is prevented.

Cycling in Osteoarthritis

Cycling, whether on a stationary bicycle or not; has been shown to reap various health benefits, such as; improving muscle strength especially in the legs, as well as improving cardiovascular health.

It is also a low impact form of exercise which provides significantly less stress to weight-bearing joints. Examples of such joints include the spine, hips, knees, and ankles.

Osteoarthritis related joint pain and stiffness rating cycling into their lifestyle. Such a sport has also shown to prevent its incidence in the first place.

Also a bad cycling joke just for fun: Every time my bike hurts me I punch it right back, it’s a vicious cycle.

Chess in Mental Health

Chess is a mind sport (yes, it is an actual sport). It is played on a square board where opponents compete to strategically checkmate each other. This is achieved by positioning several pieces so as to restrict the movement of the opponent’s king in such a way which prevents its further movement.

Chess has been shown to improve the development of the mind, especially in children as it improves problem-solving skills and abstract decision making, due to its strategic requirement. Additionally, an increase in IQ and logical and efficient thinking when selecting the superior choice out of a multitude was observed.

Finally, when taking into consideration the physical aspect of chess, it allows for the development of fine motor skills through the movement of the pieces along the board.

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