Five big problems that plague Generation Z in their sex lives

In the United States, this topic resonates throughout society. And according to experts, quite rightly so. According to one survey, the number of people who meet naturally at entertainment, in the store, on the bus or at work is still decreasing. Another survey conducted by the Kinsey Institute in 2021 claims that one in four Gen Z adults have never had partnered sex, with 31% of them saying they have only engaged in virtual sex or sexting.

“So if young adults say they don’t have sex, it doesn’t necessarily mean they’re sexually inexperienced; rather, many seem to be expressing their sexuality in a different way—and increasingly through an Internet connection,” sex researcher Justin Lehmiller explains in a blog about the survey.

Although statistics have valuable data, the picture you make based on the data obtained in this way may not be completely true. Therapists who deal with Generation Z and are thus privy to everything that concerns this age group, say that the situation can differ in social groups. Also depending on how communicative given people of this generation are. And last but not least, how much time they spend online can also shape them. Nevertheless, it is possible to define what troubles generation Z most often experiences with sex.

Young people pay a lot of attention to preserving their bodily autonomy, watching and expressing consent to each other’s provision of sex and pleasure, but at the same time, according to therapist Keanu Jackson, they cannot articulate exactly what their boundaries are, what they desire, and how their relationship to look like, which naturally can lead to many disappointments and misunderstandings.

So experts teach young people how to communicate about topics. It is important that their clients take away from the therapy the ability to formulate questions, demands and boundaries.

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Los Angeles-based therapist Torri Efron Pelton says her clients don’t like being prompted to explore their sexuality when they don’t feel ready. “By recognizing multiple sexual identities, adolescents feel more pressure to explore themselves and not fit into conventional society,” explains the psychologist.

But it also leads to concerns about how to express that I am not after casual sex, which is fashionable now, but a long-term relationship. In the same way, people of this generation feel deprived when they cannot define exactly what suits them in terms of sex. Does that mean they are weird? That’s exactly what they fear. So that’s why they withdraw into each other, the expert explains to the Huff Post.

Experts also say they often get asked by Gen Z about hooking up in sex communities. How to function in them, what to expect? No extra frills? If they are afraid of anything, it is loneliness, and therefore exclusion from society. Teenagers are also looking for such answers to their questions.

Pelton’s clients also often talk about how they are bothered by unsolicited communication on Snapchat, where they receive an explicit sexual photo that disappears after a while.

“I once had a young client who was around 15 years old. He opened his Snapchat and saw an explicit photo sent to him by a classmate. He didn’t feel good in the team and didn’t know how to process what he saw. So together we had to work out how to say something is wrong and do it personally. Because if you don’t do it, the image can turn into an intrusive thought,” adds the expert.

Generation Z people also often complain of erection problems or nervousness when they are asked to have anal sex. They have no idea how to reject a practice that does not suit them, so they prefer not to engage in sex.

At the same time, they feel the pressure of a society that assigns value judgments based on how their body looks and their perception of sexual prowess.

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