Heather Corinna

I absolutely agree with you: that is seriously not okay. I do not think you are overreacting. Not at all. I think you had a very appropriate reaction, and I’m very glad you had that reaction rather than thinking it was okay for anyone to do something like that to you. In fact, if you didn’t get far…

I would not, and cannot, give you advice on how to feel differently than you do, or on how to hide your feelings. Instead, I would only – and could only, in good conscience – advise you NOT continue to be intimate with this person again and ideally not to stay in a relationship with this person at…

We talk about this a lot here at Scarleteen: virginity isn’t physical or anything that can be universally proven or disproven with body parts. It’s an intellectual concept, an idea, a belief, and perhaps most accurately, a word for identity some people use, usually to identify when they or others…

I thought someone who’d be perfect to answer your questions is one of my favorite young sexual health educators, the marvelous Joanna Dawson, MPH, Teen Health Educator at United Action for Youth. She had some great information and helps for you! Joanna said: To start, good on you and your partner…

yougivemefever’s question continued: My boyfriend was hesitant to try to please me in the first place because he’s inexperienced and gets frustrated. He gets upset he can’t reciprocate. I don’t expect him to just know what I like. I should be comfortable enough with my body to be able to show him…

I thought that your question was a great opportunity for some peer-to-peer education. So, I asked Arianna, an awesome Scarleteen reader your age who always seems to do a great job getting to the heart of things, if she’d help you out. She was happy to do so, and gave you some great advice, resources…

Because you don’t want to have any kind of sex or a given kind of sex now, in a given relationship, or don’t feel ready now or in this relationship does not mean you won’t ever. There are many, many kinds of sex – not just intercourse, and sex also includes masturbation, having sex by ourselves…

I understand why you’re feeling heartbroken. I’m so sorry this is how things have been going for you and that you’re hurting so much. I strongly doubt you were stupid, and I want to remind you that this isn’t something you did by yourself: both of you chose to add sex to your relationship, not just…

As it is on the road, being attentive to and giving clear signs and signals is a big deal between the sheets. If navigating consent feels complicated or confusing, here’s a guide to clear it up.

Anyone who knows me or who knows anything about me usually knows that my pre-teen and teen years were incredibly difficult. I dealt with neglect and abuse in my family, starting from about the time I was 10. I was sexually assaulted twice before I even became a teenager. I was queer. I was suicidal and was a self-injurer. I struggled to find safe shelter sometimes. Few people seemed to notice, even though after I gave up trying to use my words, I still used my eyes to try and tell them constantly. I’m 40 now, and in a whole lot of ways, I felt older at 16 than I feel now. Some days, I am truly gobsmacked that I survived at all, let alone with my heart and mind intact and rich. A lot of why I survived is about having gotten support.