Banana entering a papaya, symbolising intercourse — (C) Love Matters | Rita Lino

Sex: the ins and outs of intercourse

Sex or intercourse – to put it bluntly, fucking or screwing – is when a man puts his erect penis inside a woman’s vagina.

Most young people make love in other ways first, so don’t think you have to have intercourse straight away.

How to have sex with a woman

Don’t start lovemaking with intercourse right at the beginning. Build up slowly, and make sure you both get really turned on. Slowly undress each other, kiss and stroke each other’s bodies, give each other compliments.

First stroke her belly, her breasts, and the inside of her thighs. Try touching her mons pubis, between her legs. Touch her labia briefly at first, as if by chance, to build up the excitement.

Clitoris
Stimulate the clitoris with your fingers or tongue. You can do this before, during, and after intercourse. Most women come when their clitoris is stimulated, not because of intercourse. This is because the clitoris isn’t inside of the vagina, but outside and in front of it.

G-spot
Some women have a G-spot. This is an area the size of a coin, on the front wall of the vagina a few centimetres inside. For some women, it doesn’t give any special feeling, but for others, it’s particularly sensitive.

Pain during intercourse

Only have intercourse when the woman’s vagina is nice and moist, otherwise, it’s painful for her. Some women experience pain during intercourse.

What causes this?

The first time can hurt her because the hymen is stretched.
It can hurt if the vagina isn’t moist enough. Take plenty of time to build up slowly before having intercourse, and be careful and gentle. Only start having intercourse when her vagina is really wet. Use lubricant if you need to.
If she finds intercourse painful, it could be because she’s tense. This means her pelvic floor muscles aren’t relaxing enough. Take time for her to relax and get aroused. Don’t rush to have intercourse. Ask her how it feels.
If it hurts every time you have intercourse, see a health professional – sex shouldn’t be painful.

Will it go in?

Do you ever wonder if a penis would actually fit inside your vagina? You’re not the only one. As long as a woman is aroused – relaxed and wet – a penis will easily fit inside her vagina. After all, it’s stretchy enough for a baby to come out of!

What if it won’t go in easily?

Try lubrication. Saliva (spit) and clean water are natural lubricants. You can also buy water-, silicone-, or glycerine-based lubricants in a shop.
Examples of these are:
Water-based lubricant: Astroglide or KY Jelly
Silicone-based lubricant: Wet Platinum, Eros Bodyglide
Glycerin-based lubricant: flavoured lubricants are always glycerine-based.

If you get a lot of yeast infections, avoid glycerine-based lubricants. Glycerine contains sugars that yeast feeds on, and can cause more yeast infections.

Avoid lubricants made out of petroleum jelly (Vaseline), lotions, cold creams, butter or margarine, because they can damage latex and cause condoms to tear.

Sometimes a vagina is on a slight angle or sometimes a penis is curved, which makes it harder for the penis to enter the vagina.
It can help to try different positions, for example:

‘Missionary’: the man lies on top and the woman lies on her back
Woman on top: the other way around
From behind: the woman kneels on all fours and the man enters from behind

If none of these suggestions work, see your doctor or another health care professional – they can advise you of other options.

How to have sex with a man

Don’t start lovemaking with intercourse. Build up slowly, and make sure you both get really turned on. Slowly undress each other, kiss and stroke each other’s bodies, give each other compliments.

First stroke his belly, the inside of his thighs, his balls and his buttocks before you move to his penis. Try touching his penis briefly at first, as if by chance, to build up the excitement.

Tense your vagina during intercourse. You do this the same way you would if you were holding in urine. The vagina gets tighter and this can feel nice for the man.

You can touch his anus during intercourse. It’s easy to reach if he’s lying on top of you. You can gently stroke the anus, press on it more firmly with a finger, or put the tip of your finger inside. Build this up slowly.

Try different positions.