If couples have sex an average of twice a week, some are dragging down the average with chastity while others are pumping it up with daily shagging. In addition, the averages tell you nothing about quality, or causality, pointing to a chicken-and-egg problem: Does positive feeling lead to more and better sex, or does the influence go the other way? As much as the general public is obsessed with sex and what constitutes enough of it, researchers, too, are actively exploring these areas.

IS ORAL SEX PERMISSIBLE?


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Try out PMC Labs and tell us what you think. Learn More. We integrate theoretical traditions on the social construction of gender, heterosexuality, and marriage with research and theory on emotion work to guide a qualitative investigation of how married people understand and experience sex in marriage. Results, based on 62 in-depth interviews, indicate that married men and women tend to believe that sex is integral to a good marriage and that men are more sexual than women. Sexual activity in the context of long-term heterosexual relationships may be an important site of conflict as well as relationship vitality. Married people, however, face potentially conflicting discourses around sex.
Are You Having Enough Sex?
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Many married people feel guilty about masturbating, but self-pleasure can be healthy for just about any relationship. Masturbation and marriage may seem like strange bedfellows, but self-pleasure can be a healthy part of your sex life. Not to mention, it feels pretty good. Self-touch offers an opportunity to explore what turns you on and gives you pleasure, which can help you communicate your sexual desires to your partner. The messages and stigma surrounding self-pleasure are often rooted in shame. Many people feel it should be kept private and secretive. Juliana Hauser , a therapist and sex educator in Lexington, Kentucky. According to research , masturbation is not only healthy but can lead to more satisfying sex. In a small study , married women who masturbated had more orgasms and sexual desire, boosted self-esteem, and overall, greater satisfaction in marriage and sex.