You said at one point that you felt “known.” I think that’s maybe the heart of all of this. I also think it might be what people are seeking, whether they are aware of it on any level at all, or not. Being seen and understood by someone (or many someones).
Your Penis Isn’t a Secret
The most easily identifiable source of inherited shame and fear came from role models. There were zero men in my real life from age 0-20 who ever dressed in a way that indicated they possessed anything beyond flushly sanded Ken doll parts down there. They talked about their dicks or would grab or adjust themselves occasionally. But it was all just billowing fabrics and cargo pockets.
Uncomfortable Asks: Should you buy a teenager a Fleshlight?
My philosophy has long been that Fleshlight should send every American youth one of their products the very day they turn 18, just like Gillette does with razors. I think it would solve a whole host of issues and problems, and create a lifelong customer loyalty, the likes of which no sex toy brand has ever seen before. You win that 18 year old penis over, and that penis’s owner is gonna be buying Fleshlight brand products for the rest of their ejaculating life.
What is sex?
outside our shelled understanding of what it means, and pursue it in whatever form we like, as long as we aren’t causing active harm to others.
What I did on my Social Media Vacation
The best lesson to take away from all of it is that one should be actively aware and present when stepping into these spaces. For me, in particular, going in with a baseline understanding of “this isn’t really real” helps to temper the emotional swings of rage and pleasure I know are coming my way.
Words are Important: The Accepted Shame of Calling Genitals “Privates”
There is no time or situation where “privates” is the best choice of word, and the power that it possesses to reinforce learned cultural shame about our genitals, and the unacceptability of our sex parts, is transparently dangerous.