Sex in itself is pretty taboo – particularly for a blogger. I love when I tell people I blog about sex, and I watch their faces casually attempt to make their surprised expressions look positive. This sort of ‘Oh… Ooooohh really?! The subject can make people uncomfortable, to say the least. Never mind sexual taboos.
Perhaps it was 50 Shades of Grey and the rise of Love Honey; sexual experimentation seems more out there than ever, despite the awkwardness surrounding sex conversation. It’s no longer strange to own a vibrator and have a bedroom drawer stashed full of goodies: Blindfolds, handcuffs, whips.
Could this explain why more interest seems to be increasing in kinks and fetishes that by today’s standards, are non-conventional? I decided to research 7 sexual taboos that are becoming more talked about and enjoyed through online videos and in bedrooms.
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1.) Cuckolding
A cuckold describes a person who enjoys watching their partner experience sex with someone else. Typically, it involves a wife or girlfriend sleeping with other men, but that’s not to say this desire is specific to sexuality or gender. As a kink, Healthline suggests some people like the ‘humiliation’ (the mockery that may come from your partner needing other sexual partners), the ‘submission’ and the ‘taboo’ aspect.
Mind Body Green published statistics which reveal the fantasy of cuckolding isn’t as uncommon as you might have expected. In a ‘survey of 4,000 men’, ‘58% of men had fantasies about sharing their partner with other men.’ Lad Bible reported that searches for ‘cuckold’ are continuing to increase on Google.
2.) Anal Sex
Yes, anal sex is still part of society’s sexual taboos. I know half of you reading that will be thinking, ‘REALLY?’ That’s the funny thing about anal – it seems to divide very differing opinion. People I’ve asked either consider the act as normal as missionary or as something gross that they cannot imagine doing.
Butt play has over the years, largely due to pornography, become more common and practised. In 2017, Metro reported on a survey by Bespoke Surgical which found 1 in 4 ‘straight women had anal sex on a regular basis.’ Part of Love Honey’s best-selling sets include a ‘Bumper Booty Bundle Anal Sex Toy Kit.’
Besides the whole stigma around our butts and the gross stuff that happens back there, I believe anal sex still has a stigma due to fear surrounding pain and discomfort. It’s a sexual experience that can take time to master.
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3.) Age Play
During the Covid-19 lockdown last year, a survey by KinkD found Age Play to be one of the top 10 kinks practiced. Put simply, it’s when you pretend to be a different age – something a lot of us did when we were 17. Glamour Magazine note the different levels of age play couples can practice, from ‘ultra-lite’ (calling a partner ‘baby’ or ‘daddy’) to more extreme: role-playing and acting like a baby. There are different ways to explore this kink between consenting adults.
4.) Foot Fetish
A friend recently revealed her sexual interest in feet in the same manner one would admit to having forgotten the tickets to a show, while standing in the queue. It’s one of those fetishes that’s very out in the open – who doesn’t know that some people like to have their toes sucked? Yet, who actually confesses to enjoying it?
Well, maybe in a few years we’ll all be casually discussing it as this kink is becoming more mainstream. The new comedy series Guilty Party, even covers a scene where Kate Beckinsale has her toes sucked. In 2020, Men’s Health reported that feet are the ‘single most common fetish fantasy’ with ‘1 in 7 adults’ having a fantasy that involved feet playing a ‘significant role’.
In comparison to other BDSM forms, foot fetish feels like a gentler, beginner experience – providing you can move past any gross feelings you might have towards toes and feet.
5.) Voyeurism
Voyeurism refers to when someone gains sexual gratification from watching other people engage in sexual acts. Importantly, this should always be consensual and agreed upon prior! Like with age play, there are all sorts of ways to partake in sexual voyeurism. Cosmopolitan spoke to sexologist, Jill McDevitt, who lists some of these options, from watching your partner in the shower or watching them masturbate, to bringing in another person to watch them engage in sex with your partner.
Despite this sexual act being classified as non-conventional, it’s actually something a lot of us do in some ways by watching pornography. It also doesn’t seem too farfetched to be turned on by seeing your partner pleasure themselves.
6.) Rimming
Future Method published statistics in 2019 revealing that 42% of Americans have tried analingus (otherwise known as ass licking/rimming). I feel the act has increased along with anal sex due to pornography. You will now find many publications sharing input on rim job tips and tricks.
Unfortunately, some of the judgment around rimming stems from homophobia and the idea that heterosexual men do not engage in the act. This notion is beginning to change however.
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7.) Golden Showers
There is a classic episode of Sex and the City in series 3 where Carrie dates a politician. Charming, attractive, powerful… the guy seemed ideal, if only he didn’t have a thing for golden showers. When Carrie refused to pee on him in the shower, he broke things off, leading her to write about the experience in her weekly column.
Two decades on from the show, golden showers continue to cause controversy. Some years ago, Donald Trump was linked to the fetish. To this day, he likes to tell the media he really ISN’T into them (so he says). Despite piss play being a taboo, it has become a lot more out in the open. So much so, that Allure magazine published a beginner guide on piss play fetishes. In the piece, Allure states that experts believe the kink is ‘incredibly ordinary.’
From bodily fluids to butt play, these 7 sexual taboos are entering our sexual guides and conversations with growing interest in people wanting to sexually experiment beyond the BDSM basics. Which of these kinks do you believe are the least and most controversial?
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Super hot and spot on post it’s nice to see these being talked about and seen more in mainstream, especially cuckolding and ageplay!
Thank you! I feel consenting adults should have the freedom to do what they want sexually, and we need more mainstream content making certain acts okay.