LOS ANGELES — A Los Angeles Times sex-ed columnist has offered reassurance to readers consuming more adult content than usual while observing "stay-at-home" orders during the pandemic.
Sex educator Shan Boodram answered questions in a recent column about readers' diminished libido, a partner's increased desire for sex and other topics, including the following concern: "I’m watching a ton of porn lately," a reader asked. "(I)t somehow feels wrong."
Boodram was quick to offer reassurance.
"No, you should definitely check out some of the stats from Pornhub and other sites about porn consumption these days," she responded. "They’re also finding spikes in porn watching really, really late in the night. So people are staying up later because they’re not going to work and that leads to more porn consumption. That is normal."
"I think it’s actually quite beautiful because it’s people trying to create a normal [routine] during these very abnormal times, and preserving sex and making sex still be a thing," she continued. "That’s OK in a time where we can’t touch or be within six feet of people — it can be actually very soothing, it can be a coping mechanism for some people."
Consuming steady quantities of adult content becomes problematic, she noted, when it interferes with the daily activities of life.
"It’s only weird if you feel like it’s preventing you from focusing on other areas that could be helping you in this time of quarantine," she advised. "But if it’s actually helping you and making you feel better and helping you to adjust to this time, then I say that you’re not alone. You’re not wrong."
Read the entire column on the Los Angeles Times website here.
Shan Boodram has a new Quibi show, "Sexology With Shan." Find her online and on Twitter for the latest updates.
Image source: Isabella Vosmikova/Quibi