Relationships

Hi Lily, Loneliness can be a real bummer, can’t it? Especially when you’re in a stage of transition — getting ready to go to college, leaving your old life behind — it’s easy to get a little anxious about what might lie ahead in the future. Take a deep breath, pour yourself a cup of tea, and let’s…

It sounds like you’ve put a lot of thought into what you want from a romantic and sexual relationship, and that’s great! It’s always good to spend some time figuring out what you want and need before you start a relationship. By knowing yourself and your boundaries, you’ve got a solid foundation for…

I’m so sorry to hear that your friends’ behavior has got you feeling this way, Liv. From the sound of things, even if they’re not doing it on purpose, they’re souring what otherwise sounds like something that’s been pretty nice for you and is also obviously a formative life experience. A first…

I think what you both should do — or more to the point, the only sound thing I think you can do — is accept each of your feelings and wants instead of trying to change them. I also think it’s important you let your girlfriend know that she should work to accept her feelings as well. I think it would…

Dear Anonymous, When I first got your question in my inbox, I was really excited to write a response, because I have felt the same as you at different times in my life. As a disabled teenager, the idea of having an anonymous hook-up felt weird, inappropriate, and simply didn’t feel like “the right…

Hi Gracie! What an honor to be trusted with your boyfriend’s first coming out conversation; picking the first person to talk to out loud about your sexuality can be very scary. It sounds like he loves and trusts you, but this revelation is raising some questions for you, which is understandable…

Hi Lisa, You can’t see it, but I’m holding a stop sign up to the computer screen right now, because you need to hit the brakes when it comes to your friend and his oh-so-generous offer to help you cheat on your boyfriend. That’s what he’s offering, by the way; it’s not sexual physical therapy if you…

Hello! You’re dealing with a situation that’s very familiar for many teenagers (and ex-teenagers like myself): You’re growing into your body and…you’re not sure how you feel about it. But just because this is a common stage of human development doesn’t mean you need to sit in silence, and I’m so…

This is a great question, and it’s great that you’re asking it. Stopping these comments altogether might not be possible, but there are things you can say in response and ways you can help change the tone of the conversation. First off, I want to talk a little about why your friends may be…

No, you should not have to be romantically and sexually interested in a guy to have sex with them. And no, what you want isn’t bad. It is absolutely okay to have an interest in being sexual with others but not romantic; to want sexual interactions or relationships but not romantic ones. You sound…