Covid-19 Is a True B****-Killer
The pandemic is having a very real impact on our s** lives
Charles Orgbon III
Charles Orgbon III
1 day ago·5 min read
Closeup on a potted cactus on a light green background. The cactus is leaning over the rim of the pot and resembles a flaccid p****.
Closeup on a potted cactus on a light green background. The cactus is leaning over the rim of the pot and resembles a flaccid p****.
Photo: Ana Gassent/Moment/Getty Images
The Pandemic Dating Diaries is a series from The Bold Italic that features moments in love, dating, and s** during Covid-19 directly from our readers. Have a story you’d like to submit? Email us or DM us on Twitter or Instagram.
Fever, shortness of breath, loss of taste or smell, congestion, and… impotency?
We all know the tell-tale signs of a symptomatic Covid-19 infection, but the virus’s attack on the world has created much quieter issues, from depression and anxiety to, yes, our s** lives. In general, many of us are having a hard (or soft) time getting it up. I would know, because I’ve still been having s** with men during the pandemic, albeit cautiously.
Since moving to the Bay Area in 2018, I’ve had my own s***** revolution. I’ve enjoyed exploring my queer s******** as safely as I can manage. For example, I finally got the foursomes I had always dreamed of. Move over 69. Try 469. But the novel coronavirus is putting a kink into my recent s***** exploration. I also can say that the penises I saw when I arrived two years ago are not like the penises I’ve seen lately. The pensises of 2020 (and now 2021) are less perky. They need more warming up, more patience, more empathy.
In an effort to reduce risk and be as safe as possible, after a few weeks of texting, a few phone dates, and a serious discussion about Covid-19 vulnerability factors, I’ve still been engaging in casual s**. The lingering risk, however, fails to match the reward when about one out of every two men I’m encountering can’t even keep it hard. “I’m not surprised by those numbers,” said Neena Joiner, owner of Downtown Oakland’s adult novelty and art gallery, Feelmore.
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“Men are coming in more frequently during the pandemic asking for help with keeping an erection,” Joiner says. Women are also coming in on behalf of their male partners, and sometimes for themselves, too. Joiner doesn’t offer prescriptions, but does offer Chinese medicinal solutions, and encourages her clients to be selective about what they put in their bodies. Joiner’s female and male enhancements, which target the body differently depending on the s**, have been flying off the shelves.
S** is just as much a physical experience as it is a psychological one, and there’s enough going on in our world to keep our minds from reaching their fullest s***** potential thanks to the ‘rona. Stress and anxiety can interrupt how our brain sends messages to our bodies, helping us prepare for s**. Yet, if those messages aren’t working as well or as quickly as expected, we can freeze up. Desire may still exist, even if the body fails to meet the moment.
Many men encounter pressure to perform. And pressure is just another word for more stress and anxiety, which just makes it even more challenging to produce and maintain an erection. Many of us have heard the term before: performance anxiety. For women, arousal is less visible sometimes, but a general disinterest in s** can come from mounting stress as well.
One time, I tried hooking up with a partner, but when he couldn’t get hard, he blamed it on having just watched the vice presidential debates. So, yeah, watching and listening to Mike Pence is a b****-killer, too.
Sometimes I am fortunate to hear an explanation from a male partner. “Sorry, a lot’s going on right now and I’m pretty stressed,” a partner might admit. “We can try again later,” I respond with a gentle smile. In this moment, they didn’t need C***** as much as they just needed to feel safe and affirmed, states of being that many of us are struggling to achieve in 2020.
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