Paraclitoridienne: Thanks, Genetic Lottery!

My dedicated readers know that I only read books about sex. This morning I was reading Bonk, by Mary Roach (a gift from J), and came across the following totally remarkable paragraph:

"If the distance is less than the width of your thumb, you are likely to come." This catchy anatomical ditty was penned not by Marie Bonaparte, but by Kim Wallen, an Emory University professor of behavioral neuroendocrinology...Vaginal-clitoral distances, he said, turned out to perfectly predict which women would have orgasms in intercourse and which wouldn't. The cut-off point, as Bonaparte had noted, lay at around an inch--the width of a typical thumb. (p.68)

Translation: If your clitoris is less than an inch from the opening of your vagina, you're significantly more likely to have an orgasm during sex cos that penis will, presumably, rub up against your clit.

The nice French-y word for this physiological state? Paraclitoridienne.

Other interesting details?

"Shorter women tend to have shorter spans [between clitoris and vagina]."

"Women with small breasts seem more likely to have shorter distances." (p.79)

This information has absolutely no use other than to explain why some women can have orgasms so easily and most cannot; but there's nothing to be done about the location of one's clitoris so...thanks, genetic lottery. For the other 80% of women, why not invest in a vibrating cock ring?

Q: Is there a Brazilian wax substitute? A: It's called "shaving"

The Go-To Razor.

Dear Go-To Girl,

Is there a brazilian wax substitute?
I liked the look and feel, and I LOVE the effect it has on my boyfriend. It was just so painful!! How do you make it hurt less?

Love,

Like Arachnaphobia but for Pain

Dear LABFP,

Believe me, I know how you feel. The friend of mine who talked me in to getting a Brazilian wax kept promising that it would "hurt so good" and that I'd just want to "rub all over everything." In retrospect, neither of those things are super-appealing, and neither actually happened.

She told me to take lots of ibuprofen before my appointment, to get some Bactine, and, if possible, to get high. I took ibuprofen and bought some Bactine, but I didn't have any drugs so I can't speak to the effect they might've had. I wasn't in much pain afterwards, but g-ddammit, I almost gave up in the middle of the whole thing.

I think that shaving, once you've mastered the art, is just as good as waxing but if you want to mimic the boyfriend-effect you really have to do it right before sex. I know people who are into having their partner shave them. If your partner is R. Kelly, I imagine you know something about this.

To do a really thorough job, you've got to get out of the way of the shower stream and use a good shaving cream--I like Kiss My Face because it's not foamy and stays put for a while. You've got to put each leg up on something and use your hands to pull the skin of your vag taut to get a smooth shave. Shave in the direction of hair growth first and then shave against it.



You've got to really use your hands so you can feel where the hair is; you won't be able to see all the crevices you're after, so get comfortable. Controversy surrounds whether or not to shave the rosebud; if you're not into anal, don't bother.

Shaving the area takes practice and maintenance but it's worth it.

Please do not--I repeat, do not--use depilatories in your nether regions. Take it from me--they aren't lying when it says on the label that it's not intended for the "genital area."

Good luck!
Go-To Girl

Q: Should I get a Brazilian wax the day before my boyfriend comes home? A: Not unless he's blind.

Ouch! Make sure the person waxing you speaks enough English to understand when you say "STOP!".

Dear Go-To Girl,

So I've been wanting to get a Brazilian bikini was for ages now and my boyfriend has been away all summer so now seems like a perfect time. What's the recovery like? If I get waxed the day before he comes home, will I be in too much pain to fuck all weekend?

We haven't seen each other in so long that I can't tolerate anything standing in the way of us having constant sex for at least 3 days.

Love,

Wannabe Brazilian

Dear WB,

Having had some recent experience in this area, I can tell you that a Brazilian wax will not leave you in too much pain to have sex (a friend of mine describes the feeling as "hurts so good") but your area will look puffy, red, and unappealing, which is kind of the diametric opposite of what you're going for when you get a Brazilian.

I think you need a few days to visually recover, but you can definitely have sex right away. The part that hurts the most is the mons; the vaj itself recovers remarkably fast. The good news about a bikini wax is that the whole process only takes about 20 minutes: a solid, excruciating 20 minutes. And then it's over.

Go Forth and Wax,

Go-To Girl