What's The Deal With 50 Shades Of Grey?
RE Blogged from askmen.com
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Tattoo Fetishes
Doc,Is there such a thing as a tattoo fetish?-Anonymous People can fetishize just about anything, including tattoos.
There’s some debate as to what the definition of fetish is.
Webster’s dictionary says a fetish is an object or body part whose real or
fantasized presence is psychologically necessary for sexual gratification and that is an
object of fixation to the extent that it may interfere with complete sexual expression.
That’s generally what the medical and psychiatric community thinks. Others have a
less strict definition and don’t require conditional language like
“fixation” or “necessary.” Some find the phrase “may
interfere with complete sexual expression” problematic. Who gets to decide
what’s complete? For our purposes, lets loosen the fetishistic terminology and
assume in this case a tattoo fetishist is someone who gets turned on by tattoos. Simple
and to the point. On a person, tattoos can be
self-arousing. Some people get off when getting tattoos. It could have aspects of
masochism and pain fulfillment, enjoyment and arousal of the tattooing sensation, or even
a visual arousal seeing themselves covered in ink. But for those who find tattoos hot and
sexy, it’s most often on other people. What’s hot you say? Tattoos are edgy
and taboo. Many find the danger and adventurousness surrounding tats arousing, and ink is
often associated with a bad boy or the bad girl. There is a lot of psychologically
arousing material to explore with tattoos. A perfect
example of how much the public finds tattoos erotic are the Suicide Girls. Not suicidal females — instead, these
are empowered, tatted women who act in softcore erotic scenes. What started out as a small
website exploded into a huge empire with over 2,000 featured models, books, DVDs and
burlesque tour. If there wasn’t a public market for tattoos being arousing, this
concept never would have taken off. Not sure if this is your thing? Google Suicide Girl
images and see for yourself. I’m sure you’ll find out real quick if this is
something that turns you on.
Family Matters
Hi Doc,My uncle just contracted Hepatitis C, and I’m not really sure
what that means. I overheard it and everyone in my family is being really secretive and
weird about it. Can you explain something about this, please?-Anonymous Sorry to hear about this. I’m happy you’re seeking
out information and trying to become knowledgeable about this virus. It’s too bad
your family is being secretive. While they may have their reasons, being open and honest
generally seems to be the best approach for most life stressors and issues. Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) is a virus that is transmitted through
blood. It can be spread via sex, blood transfusions or IV/needle drug use. The classic
symptoms are dark urine, clay-colored feces, jaundice and flu-like symptoms. It’s
estimated that more than three million Americans are infected and more than three quarters
are over the age of 50. While the majority of people can live with HCV, some develop
cirrhosis of the liver or liver cancer. There is treatment for HCV, which consists of
pills and weekly injections, and although not all respond, the treatment methods are
advancing. My advice to you is reach out to your uncle. He may or may not want to share
what he is going through, but many people feel isolated, depressed and hopeless, and the
love of a family member can be especially comforting in difficult times. Also, consider
encouraging him to find a counselor who specializes in HCV or infection/viral coping. It
usually helps to talk and be heard. In truth, for
years I wasn’t fully aware of HCV and the magnitude of this virus. Many sexologists
(including myself) as well as the public have focused more on HIV/AIDS. What was startling
for me to read about was the numbers when comparing the two viruses. There are
approximately three times more HCV cases than HIV/AIDS cases in America and more deaths
from HCV than HIV/AIDS each year. I was shocked to learn that. I’m not implying one
is more important than the other. However, I am saying that both viruses need more
testing, public awareness and public advocacy. For more information on HCV and other
infections/viruses, the Center for Disease
Control website has a wealth of information on statistics, symptoms, treatment and
related issues.