communication

First things first - it sounds like your family needs to step back and let you make your own choices here, without adding their own commentary or judgment. They may be coming from a place of concern, but it’s misguided and hurtful, and whether they wind up being right about this or not, it’s still…

Rule #1 of partnered sex: no one is entitled to any kind of sex with another person. Safe, healthy, pleasurable sex can only happen when both people are on the same page, and they respect each other’s boundaries and desires. Honestly, what I read in your question are many feelings of anger and…

What do you do in dating when one person is trans and one is cisgender?

Breakups are rarely any fun, for either party involved. It can be hard to figure out a way to end a romantic relationship without causing too much pain or awkwardness, especially when you still really care about the person you’re breaking up with. Since it sounds like you’re pretty sure that this…

If you’re caring for a young person, then the question of when and how to have “the talk” with them has likely crossed your mind.

There are so many things that make me glad in your question. Glad that L has at least one person that he feels safe sharing that part of himself with. Glad you reacted positively and confirmed his trust in you. But oh how I am not glad that he’s still in a situation where he doesn’t feel comfortable…

Identity can be such an obnoxious creature sometimes. Just when you think you’ve got it all sorted out, some new evidence pops up and you have to rethink things. And I don’t need to tell you how frustrating that shift can be, because you’re in the middle of it. It can be doubly trying if you’ve…

Dr. Karen Rayne has spent a decade supporting parents and young adults with well-researched, thoughtful discussion of sex and sexuality.

If by sex, you mean intercourse, you probably can’t. Even if you could, you or your partner probably wouldn’t enjoy it: the idea intercourse is something people do – or even can do, or would enjoy if they could – for an hour or two just doesn’t square with reality. A lot of people have unrealistic…

First off, I want to say that it takes an incredible amount of strength to have gone through (and continue to go through) what you have and survive. You’ve managed to grown and thrive in spite of other people doing awful things to you. That’s not nothing. And that strength is going to come in handy…