Did you know that every second, 28,258 Internet viewers are watching porn? And, not surprisingly, about 72 percent of those viewers are men. These statistics may bother many spouses or conservative individuals, but it’s not fair to say that watching porn is wrong — in fact, it’s pretty normal. However, it has become so normalized that it may be influencing our generation’s sex lives. Because the Internet has made it so easy for our generation to access porn at early ages, it has affected the way men and women today anticipate what real-life sex should be.
One example of porn’s influence is the revolution of waxed pubic hair. In case you ladies were wondering, in modern times, about 78 percent of female students shave or wax either some or all of their pubic hair. The reason women all over the world now allow hot wax to be dripped on their privates is because they know men expect to see little to no hair when the pants come off. It’s debatable whether or not this is a bad thing. Some say that certainly puts pressure on women and it is demeaning because it makes the natural female body seem undesirable, but others think it’s wonderful that women are keeping it less hairy nowadays. Either way, this trend has become the new “normal” because porn stars are shown hairless and that’s what viewers learn to expect during sex. However, everyone has their own preference, so it’s better to just ask your partner what he or she likes — but don’t be surprised if he or she wants it bare.
Though shaving pubic hair probably isn’t causing much of a problem, there are some expectations that porn creates that can be damaging. For instance, most women who are new to being sexually active may feel that they are supposed to have a mind-blowing orgasm from penetration alone, and when they (inevitably) do not have it, they feel they must fake it by screaming and yelling with porn-star drama. After all, porn star ladies always have very loud climaxes from very unrealistic circumstances. But, realistically, 71 percent of women do not orgasm from penetration alone, ever. So nothing is wrong with you if you need some time and other methods to enjoy yourself.
We all know that real-life sex doesn’t happen with a cheesy elevator music soundtrack and that we are usually not one bad cut away from having a threesome. But what else should we be expecting from non-porn sex? Well, we should be expecting to spend about 10 to 12 minutes of making out and foreplay before most people are really revved up for sex, unlike porn stars who are ready to go at a moment’s notice. We should also not be expecting sex itself to last for half an hour — the average a male lasts is between three and 14 minutes.
Porn stars are also not what your typical sex partner will look like. The average porn star penis is six to nine inches, while the average non-porn-star penis is around five to seven inches. Porn star lady bits also seem to always have a similar look, but vaginas can be an assortment of different shapes and sizes, and they are all perfectly normal.
As for oral sex, it is obviously quite popular nowadays. Surveys show that about 75 percent of women and 55 percent of men in the young-age range report giving oral in the past year. Though there are many conflicting statistics out there about oral behavior, the numbers are usually pretty high, and they have been increasing as oral is becoming more of a norm. However, only 30 percent of women report that they will swallow, unlike the 100 percent of porn stars that do. But, of course, if you are uncomfortable with oral or swallowing, you should feel no pressure to perform it, and should talk to your partner about it.
In the realm of “how many women have done this,” about 40 percent of women have tried anal, 11.5 percent of proclaimed straight women have has a same-sex experience, less than 20 percent of women have been in a threesome and 40 percent of women have tried light bondage. These numbers may have fluctuated in the past year or may be different among college students, but they are a more realistic look at the average person’s sex life as opposed to porn, where all of those numbers are significantly higher.
So if you have let porn shape your expectations, try not to take those fake orgasms and boobs too seriously — real men and women are not porn stars, nor should they be expected to be. It is important to talk to your sexual partner about what you are comfortable with and what you like, so you can avoid turning your real-life sex into a feigned mimic of a pornographic scene.
