Feminists have long complained about sexual repression. For decades, men have always had access to resources that provide sexual gratification, while women were told that seeking sensual delight is just plain wrong.
This double standard has led to women having difficulties exploring their sexuality, even by themselves. Decades of misconceptions have triggered women to think that seeking sexual pleasure is immoral.
Fortunately, societal norms have slowly evolved with the evolution of technology. There’s less struggle in exploring women’s sexuality these days, thanks in part to digital technology.
In this article, we discuss the basics of sexuality, and how women have been using technology to obtain sexual freedom through unbridled exploration.
What is Sexuality?
Generally speaking, sexuality refers to an individual’s sexual thoughts, feelings, and preferences, sexual behavior included. It has something to do with how a person identifies themselves, how they develop sexual attraction, and how they behave sexually in romantic relationships.
It also encompasses sexual preferences—what you like and dislike, with whom, your fantasy and fetishes, and your triggers. How often do you like sex and how? Which of the senses should be most active in turning you on? These, among other questions, are worth responding to, if you want to understand how to explore your sexuality.
Contrary to common notions, a woman’s sexuality is not static. Being closely tied to emotions and mood, it can change from time to time. A woman can be very sexual when she’s happy or experiencing specific triggers, while other times, she simply doesn’t want to do it. This is normal and should not be interpreted as a sign that something’s not right.
Women and Sexual Pleasure
That being said, individual preferences play a huge influence over how much sexual pleasure a woman gets from a certain encounter. These include how relaxed she feels, how she feels about her body at the moment, how much aroused she is, and how she feels about her partner.
External factors such as cultural norms and societal beliefs likewise impact a woman’s attitude and views about sexual pleasure. If she’s stuck with the belief that sex shouldn’t be an enjoyable experience or that it should only be used for reproduction, she may have a traditional perception about sex and may not even dare to seek sexual pleasure.
How Digital Technology Has Helped Women Explore Their Sexuality
Below are some of the ways how tech proved to be helpful when it comes to helping women understand and enjoy their sexuality:
Easier Access to Physical Pleasuring Devices
Getting familiar with your body, or body mapping, and masturbation, are keys to identifying your pleasure spots. Body mapping is knowing how your body looks, smells, and feels. Masturbation allows you to know how your body reacts to a specific pleasure stimulus. Both elements are essential in sexual exploration and pleasure.
Sex toys like a wand massager can help women explore their sexuality, with or without a partner. In the past, these pleasuring devices are only available in specialty shops that you have to visit personally. Digital technology has allowed online shopping. And it also helps that most couriers, retailers, and suppliers offer discrete packaging nowadays. Hence, women can get these without enduring the judgmental stares of in-person shoppers.
Increasing Consumption of Explicit Online Materials
The research performed by professors from the University of Waterloo in Canada, meant to understand how digital technology enables women’s consumption of explicit materials online. Among other findings, they found out that women use technology to explore their sexuality and connect with a community of like-minded individuals to discuss their sexual interests—including the use of sexual aids and unconventional practices.
Additionally, the study also revealed that consumption of online pornography among women experienced a steep increase over the years, which the researchers presumed was the effect of women exploring sexuality on their terms, including fresh ideas and concepts.
Like online shopping, access to online sites via smartphone and electronic devices offers privacy, offering unrestricted access to resources the others may view as taboo.
The LGBTQIA+ movement
Millennials are lucky to have been born at a time when society has become more accepting of sexuality. With the various resources on the internet these days about the different sexual orientations, people have become more aware of their sexuality.
The movement has likewise made it easier for individuals to come out as either gay, lesbian, bisexual, bi-curious, closeted, gender-fluid, pansexual, among other types of orientations.
With that said, women who associate with any of these gender definitions, do have a lesser burden to carry—being that they can come out as such in their social media accounts or elsewhere in the digital space. With better acceptance from society and despite the bashing of a few narrow-minded people, women can express their sexuality more openly.
Additionally, as societies have become more accepting of different sexualities, some online dating apps have become more targeted at persons who identify themselves as belonging to a specific sexual orientation.
Apps That Encourage Sexual Exploration
Speaking of apps, some of them can be used to explore sexuality even without the help of another individual. For instance, some apps focus on sexual exploration for women who prefer to do it on their own and explore further with a partner.
The effects of these apps of this nature are often backed by science, although some are based on mystical or new-age beliefs. One of the apps available in the market exploits the body-mind connection when it comes to sexual exploration and pleasure.
Still, some apps are created with the help of psychosexual therapists to make them more effective. Resources include video and audio materials about sexual pleasure, confidence, and health. This means these apps can benefit women who lack body confidence or those who are facing sexual-related problems.
Erotic Fanfiction
Women are likewise open to discuss their fantasies and sexual desires while remaining anonymous. And this is made possible through fanfiction sites. To those who don’t know, fanfiction refers to literature written by fans of a specific book, television series, or movie. These literary works are typically published online and on specific fanfiction sites.
Erotic fan fiction sites have allowed women to determine their sexual limits. There are no clear statistics about the sector. But the industry noticed that women dominate fanfiction sites. Fanfiction sites also cater to the sexual desires of women, and LGBTQIA+ folks.
Final Thoughts
Sexual exploration in women has become easier with digital technology. The channels discussed in this article offer safe and confidential means to evaluate your inclinations. In real life, though, testing your sexual proclivities and limits should be done with caution to prevent sexually transmissible diseases.
