Is It Possible For Women to Have Sex Like Men?

Hola Images/Getty Images
Hola Images/Getty Images

Kimberly, a 27-year-old nanny in Atlanta, has had sex with three men in the past month. "I have a job, hobbies, and friends I love. A monogamous relationship is the only component of my life that is lacking-but I love it!" she says. "I want Mr. Right eventually, but for the time being, I've got needs, and Mr. Right Now will do just fine."

Welcome to the hookup culture-or as Washington Post reporter Laura Sessions Stepp puts it, "the most confusing sexual landscape any generation has faced."

Question: Do you think it's ever possible for women to have sex like men?
Answer: Sure, but nine times out of 10 they're going to feel something afterward. I have no data to back this up, but I am convinced that one reason we're seeing alcohol-consumption rates go up in women is that they are taking part in these sexual encounters, believing they should do so and be strong about it. And they're having to do it over and over again. At some point it denies their own biology and desires, so of course they drink in order to prepare for it, because it's not what they want to do. One of the girls in my book, Alicia, says hookup sex is very scripted. You turn off everything except your body and make yourself emotionally invulnerable. Who wants that? It's like saying I'm going to plunge down the roller coaster without anticipating the ride to the top. It's a cheap thrill.

Stepp reveals what she discovered in her provocative book, Unhooked: How Young Women Pursue Sex, Delay Love and Lose at Both. Read More >> Can Women Have Sex Like Men?


Related Links from Marie Claire
* 9 Signs He Is Cheating
* 50 Celebrity Hairstyle Dos and Don'ts
*
100+ Christmas Gifts
* Looking for More Love, Fitness & Career Advice? Subscribe to Marie Claire & Save!

Reprinted with Permission of Hearst Communications, Inc.