It’s understandable to get nervous when trying something new for the first time – especially when that something is in the context ofsex.
A new study by Superdrug looked into the sex positions that men and women are most anxious to try out. The survey collated answers from 1,000 people from Europe and America, all of whom were in relationships.
It was found that the most nerve-wracking position is ’69 standing up’, which involves being picked up or picking up your partner while performing oral sex. Approximately 56.8% of women and 42.7% of men said the very idea of this position scared them.
In second place was anal sex, which 54.5% of women and 30.5% of men said they would be nervous to try, followed by ‘the kneeling wheelbarrow’, cited by 24.8% of women and 18.6% of men. The least-stressful positions included missionary, cowgirl and doggy-style – despite the latter recently being identified as the position that’s most likely to snap a man’s penis.
Facing your fears
The study also found that European men were more anxious about masturbation, oral sex and dirty sex when compared to their American peers, while an overall total of 9% of couples reportedly didn’t consider themselves to be sexually adventurous at all.
While we’re not suggesting you need to go full 50-shades in order to enjoy a fulfilling sex life, sex and relationships expert Annabelle Knight reckons there’s something to be said for mixing things up a bit. Speaking to NetDoctor, she said:
‘Mixing up your routine is a sure-fire way to keep things lively and fresh. You don’t need to be swinging from the chandelier every single session – however, trying something new every now and then has been proven to increase your overall desire and, in turn, boost your libido.’
She added: ‘The next step you should take is to write down three scenarios or positions you’d like to try and then compare notes. The idea is you exchange lists and each chooses a new position to try. Most couples find that they’ve written down at least one similar thing.’
