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eased management strategies.

The thing is, I don't feel attacked or diminished or anything else by this article. Despite the fact that I'm a guy, I have insecurities and I can in some places see a stupid, obnoxious mirror of myself in Clarisse's dumb ex boyfriends -- that isn't at all why I thought I should talk about the topic more with the author. It just seemed to me like Clarisse hadn't quite got her head around what the guys were going through with their side of this interaction. Where their insecurities came into play.

In my head, I see a young woman, working through her own issues with orgasms reading this, and seeing her young boyfriend reflected in Clarisse's past relationships. And the take away from Clarisse's experience at the moment seems to be that if your boyfriend is insecure and stupid, maybe he's not the right person to work through this with you. And I'm not sure that's doing anyone any favors. I mean shit, maybe that is what you should take away from reading this -- that the guy you're with isn't the right person for you right now if you're struggling with difficulty achieving orgasm. But maybe there are other stories going on as well. Maybe he's insecure about his role and his failings (or his body or whatever) and maybe he could be the right guy to work through this with you, if you're the right person to work through his insecurities with him?

And please, please don't take that to mean let things slide because you don't want to emasculate him. I'm not for a moment advocating putting up with nonsense because he's a guy with a precious male ego. But lots of guys, certainly including myself, have personal insecurities, about masculinity and about sexuality, and attached to the perceptions of masculinity in sexual situations. As a guy, we're all taught that real men don't give head -- or at least that it's a private thing that we don't admit too -- which is so fucking stupid, but is still really out there in heteronormative western male culture. We're all taught that getting a woman off is our job, and to be a good man, and a good lover, we have to get our partner off before we get off. I don't know a single sexually active guy who has never felt humiliated because he came too early, and too early is largely defined as before our partner gets off. And we're all taught that real men get their partners off with nothing but the awesomeness of our cocks. Hand jobs/digital penetration are fine for highschool or fore play -- but our image of a good man, and a desirable lover doesn't integrate with those things. We're coached by pop culture and porn to believe that the guy every woman wants is the one who sticks his cock in and makes her explode with joy from the very first thrust. And any time that doesn't happen, the guy is at fault.

And again, to stress my position here, I think all of those things are stupid, illogical nonsense. But those are the pressures that are on guys. And maybe, if the guy that you're with is struggling to work through your orgasm issues, maybe it's because he's so far under the weight of his own insecurities that he doesn't know how to cope with his own issues, and be a supportive partner to work through yours. But the thing about a good relationship, is that together you're stronger than the sum of your individualities. Maybe as a couple, you can work through his insecurities and your orgasm difficulties at the same time. Nobody's problems exist in a vacuum, and sometimes finding the support you need is easier if you just fix the support you already have.

I posted the comment in response to the other dude's Feministe comment, and there was some discussion afterwards -- including some guys saying that they never got any memo

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