Am I weird for thinking that oral sex is more intimate than intercourse?

r/

I’ve (48F) thought this since forever. I’ve only had a few relationships in my life and don’t have much experience. However, as I get older, I’ve shared this view with some friends and a couple of guys I’ve been out with. Most people think I’m out of my mind. But someone actually said something that made sense. He said that intercourse is an innate instinct for reproducing. Oral sex, however, is something we came up with for the pure pleasure of it. So feeling that oral is way more personal than intercourse isn’t as weird as most people would think. Any opinions?

Comments

  1. vrosej10 Avatar

    nope. I feel like that too and my friends as well

  2. _BeautifullyBroken Avatar

    And kissing is more intimate than the other two!

  3. Pretend_Work_2994 Avatar

    I think it become oral is about one person over the over it like I love you do much il do this thing that only you get to enjoy cos that makes me happy that your happy

  4. TheRemedyKitchen Avatar

    I was in an open relationship years ago and we agreed that oral was more intimate and reserved for just us. We could hook up with other people, but no oral. Unless we were together in a group setting. Then we could give or receive oral from someone else because we were sharing in the moment

  5. Relative_Antelope_27 Avatar

    I’m inclined to agree…It’s definitely more ‘in your face’ as it were.

  6. Cold-Set849 Avatar

    Na I can see it

  7. ListenTraditional552 Avatar

    The most intimate thing you can do is hold hands and look at your partner.

    The others are things to perform. Sitting, holding hands and just looking at each other is so intimate.

    You perform when having sex or giving a BJ.

  8. RMWL Avatar

    I dunno, nothing is more intimate than washing your partners hair

  9. GraveDanger884 Avatar

    Oddly I’ve got way less hangup sending my dick in to strange new genitals vs sending my mouth into unexplored territory. Your theory makes sense to me.

  10. sapphireston Avatar

    I think it’s the cleaner than kissing

  11. JacobZuma420 Avatar

    I was in a FWB situation once and she believed ora was more intimate than sex. She has no problem with random hookups/one night stands but oral was reserved for relationships.

  12. IAmTomyTheTiger Avatar

    I dont think its weird, but rather confusing because in my experience at least, the women ive dated growing up would only be open to oral and outercourse. Though I wonder how much of this is because of their religion. Penetration has always had a sort of extra level of intimacy about it because to them it was something only or mostly for after marrige.

  13. shortgreybeard Avatar

    All part of the package. A long, slow, gentle session is great, with a 69 included.

  14. R2-Scotia Avatar
  15. The-Cyberpunk Avatar

    A blowjob is a performance sport and intercourse is rythm based co-op.

  16. neurospicygogo70 Avatar

    I don’t agree. I don’t exactly know why.

  17. Raccoon_Sharp Avatar

    I once had a girl tell me, she uses her face and mouth to express who she is, to be in contact with the world etc. So her giving oral felt more meaningful to her then vaginal intercourse.

    And to be fair I could see myself putting things in my ass I would not put in my mouth (a rectal thermometer for example).

  18. Cold_Navy79 Avatar

    Technically you are not wrong. I mean, you are putting your face (mouth) in a very private area.

  19. esweat Avatar

    Yup. I’ve long thought that. Always made me wonder about those dweebs who think oral sex isn’t cheating. Ask around, you’ll find them.

  20. roskybosky Avatar

    Yes, I think it is, also. Anything involving your mouth seems more intimate, less so than anything ‘down there’.

  21. Icy_Dot500 Avatar
  22. Academic_Candy4611 Avatar

    Nope I agree with you it’s much more intimate and sexier especially when you see it that she is equally enjoying the pleasure

  23. The-SkullMan Avatar

    I’d say it’s more about the one-sided nature of typical oral. (excluding 69) Where one side does all the work and the other is just there to enjoy.

  24. Nothingnoteworth Avatar

    Not weird at all. Your reasoning makes sense.

    If we consider a schematic idea of how sex takes place then intercourse leans towards both-at-once and oral leans toward one-giving-one-receiving, so I can also see how someone might see both-at-once to be more intimate.

    But that schematic is overly simplified and people get down in all kinds of ways. The answer to which is more intimate isn’t innate it’s personal. Oral sex is more intimate for you, intercourse is more intimate for someone else, foreplay is the most intimate bit for that other person, cuddling afterwards before the wet patch gets cold is peak intimacy for that couple over there.

    Intimacy doesn’t have rules it just has feelings

  25. Cowstle Avatar

    It can certainly be intimate. It’s hard to compare with missionary for intimacy though. I could see the argument for plenty of positions though.

    It also can be not very intimate. It depends on the vibes and what you’re doing

  26. molhuggu Avatar

    I totally agree 🤘

  27. MyHamburgerLovesMe Avatar

    I know a few people who detest giving or receiving oral sex.

    Most likely this stemmed from childhood abuse.

  28. timothj Avatar

    John Updike is on record agreeing with you.

  29. mangotangotang Avatar

    Interesting. Are there cultures where oral sex does not exist as a sexual behavior? Or did not exist until today where modern media is teaching everyone how to have sex? Which types of cultures did oral sex arise from: agrarian or nomadic?

  30. BedGirl5444 Avatar

    It’s normal 

  31. porpoisebuilt2 Avatar

    No, you are not weird…..it is far more intimate and meaningful in a way that I feel not many truly understood.

    But, each to their own….the easy access to media has not done ‘sex’ one iota of good

  32. dfinkelstein Avatar

    If you’re drowning in white water rapids, then I’d rather throw you a flotation device on a rope, than swim it out to you.

    Oral is more vulnerable and intimate.

  33. Zackeezy116 Avatar

    There’s a college humor sketch about this. Yea, oral is more intimate, for sure.

  34. Iwill_not_comply Avatar

    I have lived in both the midwest US and an North-European country. My collected (not necessarily experienced) data on this is that in US, young people offer oral sex before intercourse, deeming it as a less important sexual act. In North-Europe I have found it’s the other way around, deeming oral sex as something more intimate.
    Disclaimer: this is old numbers, from at least 20 years back.

  35. Educational_Camera42 Avatar

    Kissing is more intimate than sex

  36. DotAffectionate87 Avatar

    Makes sense….. Also Oral is “kinda” optional? If you going to “have sex” with a person you cant really not do “PIV”?……

    Thats why “Prostitutes” don’t kiss….. There is a certain level of intimacy when swapping tongues and saliva and being literally face to face.

  37. KommanderZero Avatar

    Try anal, that’s very intimate

  38. pasgames_ Avatar

    I think the show friends put it best when the one girl said “it’s closer to your heart”

  39. bubblegrubs Avatar

    Yes! I [37M] really don’t like head from somebody unless I’m completely comfortable, which rarely happens the first few times I’m with somebody. It makes me feel on way too on display.

    I also really hate feeling on display and it stresses me out that guys are always asking for eye contact so it’s like the main thing women focus on during a blowjob. I just want them to focus on stimulating the nerves but that always seems to be a lesser priority than staring at me. Also, why do they keep stopping as soon as anything feels good? Drives me fucking insane.

  40. Adventurous_Topic202 Avatar

    I agree imo it’s one of the more trusting/loving acts your partner can do for you

  41. Stay_Reclusive321 Avatar

    Bruh, kissing is more intimate than sex imo

  42. nderacheiver1 Avatar

    in my opinion (not taking any variables into account) you are correct . i’ve found this to be true with every partner i have had

  43. bl1ndsw0rdsman Avatar

    I’ve felt the same for a long time so no, you’re no weird a’tall!

  44. djfl Avatar

    Fwiw, I was with a Jehovah’s Witness for a little bit. This is how they thought. Blew my mind, and not anything else. Liked sex though!

  45. HolaSoyAuggie Avatar

    This is such a cultural thing. I’m from South America and I always notiched how a bj comes first in american movies like “I only gave him a bj!”. Yet here a bj is something most people don’t neccessarily do it when they have sex. It’s more of a “only with my bf” kind of thing

  46. whereisgia Avatar

    I have always thought the exact same thing! Glad I’m not alone lol

  47. Necessary_Violence95 Avatar

    I agree 100%. Oral pleasure is very intimate and if both people actually enjoy doing it , it is something fucking intense and amazing

  48. Vertnoir-Weyah Avatar

    I think it’s a valid opinion and that meaning is in the minds of those included

    For some it might mean less comitment due to not having to reveal your whole body, the mouth not being as sensitive or things like that

    Others might share your opinion. I do have the feeling that it is a more intimate comitment, as you choose a way to act towards your partner that involves less direct pleasure for yourself and can be more straining the longer you go. There is beauty in the deliberate comitment towards the other, especialy when it’s spontaneous rather than asked for

  49. Jetro-2023 Avatar

    No not weird at all. I agree it’s definitely more intimate.

  50. aster0idB612 Avatar

    I’ve always thought this too. The way I put it is it’s a different level of comfort for me for oral, because it’s really up close and personal.

  51. Recent_Permit2653 Avatar

    I don’t think it’s weird.

    In one sense, if I give oral sex, it’s because I’m into you enough to do this for you.

    On the other hand, I’ve always been kinda meh about receiving. It feels good, I’m not ever gonna say no, but…it’s also not something I’m motivated to ask for and I’m certainly not gonna catch feelings from it.

  52. asunshinefix Avatar

    Nah, I agree. The intimacy and power dynamic really do it for me.

  53. kae0603 Avatar
  54. Toxonomonogatari Avatar

    Not weird at all, but I think for more general reasons than what I’ve read here so far. The other person you’re conversing with here is making an evolutionary argument, but conscious experiences are complex — definitely influenced by more than straight biology or logic.

    What paints your experience of something is a blend of many of the things that makes you you. It can be argued that no one really experiences the same thing due to the context of our entire physical and mental being deciding how we perceive those experiences.

  55. Yawehg Avatar

    It’s also generational. Most Baby Boomers would agree with you, most Millennials wouldn’t. As a young Gen-Xer you’re right in that transition zone.

  56. According-Race-6587 Avatar

    I would be much more upset if I found out my significant other cheated through oral sex. I would be much more upset if I found out she’s given oral sex to multiple people i know before we dated. The reason being that sex is mutually pleasurable but for the most part, you’re not getting much out of giving oral sex. I love giving oral dont get me wrong, but If I were to give a stranger oral in a dirty bathroom, I would feel more shame than pride.

  57. Lampy-Boi Avatar

    Yeah I’ve never looked at it this way before but I’m inclined to agree. Also, with giving oral to someone with a penis, there is some level of trust there because the mouth does contain teeth. Additionally, you look at their face more than their genitals. It’s a little bit more of a personal experience.

  58. Equivalent-Ad-6182 Avatar

    I agree with you 100%.

  59. nonsensicalinsanity Avatar

    Not odd at all. Always thought oral was more intimate. Yes the “traditional way” can be fun and intimate also but not as considering what you are doing with oral. Your mouth is where person pisses. Even if it’s freshly cleaned it still doesn’t stop accidental pissing in others mouth. Because of medical reasons, mostly psychological, i had to find a way to please my better half because i couldn’t rise to the occasion 90% of the time and was half mast or erect but bendy the other 10%. So i learned how to use my mouth and hands, ex wife was fully against oral. Only issue i have with oral is i give but don’t receive, been that way for almost 2 years. Was told she stopped after 15 years because i was to large and it hurt her mouth, which might be true since teeth were always there no matter what we tried. Sorry for the TMI rambling. Had way too much caffeine and way too little sleep since my ED stopped and our drive is back up.

  60. CorvidCuriosity Avatar

    I agree, and I think it’s partly because it’s (usually) one-sided. You are doing something sexual for your partner, which might mentally arose you, but isn’t physically doing anything for yourself.

  61. whatwhatchickenbutt_ Avatar

    i don’t feel this way at all

  62. FarBlackberry4634 Avatar

    Man js sounds like yk what u like

  63. db9485 Avatar

    I agree. My mouth is sacred and I would probably be more selective than just sex. Although all the men I have slept with I’ve given head also but I also have been selective for sex as well. (I’m 30 and can count my partners on one hand) But I do think head is very intimate. Even kissing is intimate.

  64. MapleWatch Avatar

    Nope. I’m definitely putting a lot of trust in someone when I put my junk in their mouth.

  65. Dear-Relationship666 Avatar

    Your face is literally down there! Yes its more intimate

  66. dravenito Avatar

    I feel the same about it

  67. heapSpace9 Avatar

    It’s very intimate to be allowed to touch something with your tongue that other people are not even allowed to touch with their views.

  68. TheGrandCucumber Avatar

    I believe that the teacher of my High School sex ed class said this used to be the case until like the 60s-70s. I don’t remember the reasoning

  69. Putrid_Heart_4196 Avatar

    Maybe it’s the fetish speaking but I think having someone inside my insides is more intimate than putting it in my mouth…

  70. MajesticBlackberry65 Avatar

    I don’t feel like either is intimate, and I haven’t had a lot of either

  71. Ashleythomsonmate Avatar

    100% agree. I can say we dont give oral sex as much as we fuck. Is kinda sexual kiss on your genitals

  72. OneNo5482 Avatar

    “But honey , I only had sex with him. I didn’t blow him. There’s no need for a divorce.”

  73. Sirius_Space Avatar

    Have you seen Clerks ?

  74. Commercial-Garage-60 Avatar

    As a woman I totally agree, Ive had my share of one night stands and such but I really only go down on exclusive partners that I really care for

  75. Capable_Way_876 Avatar

    I would blow him until the sun comes up, and be happy as can be.

  76. Projectguy111 Avatar

    I’ve always felt this way.

  77. Leinahpetss Avatar

    I am a woman, and I totally agree with you! I know I wouldn’t be able to do it to a man I don’t know very well. I think this is really a “treat” we give to persons we love

  78. Silverblade_21 Avatar

    Holding hands is more intimate than both.

  79. MyDadBod_2021 Avatar

    I agree with OP….

  80. phtcmp Avatar

    My wife would certainly agree.

  81. Tiny_lost_love Avatar

    I agree with you. It was a discussion I had with my partner recently

  82. HomemadeMacAndCheese Avatar

    Oral sex is wayyyyyyy more intimate than intercourse

  83. Civil-Shopping2042 Avatar

    I feel the same way. Oral is way above conventional sex.

  84. cnottus Avatar

    I had a hard and fast rule when I was single.. we could have intercourse once I felt comfortable with you but I will never touch my mouth to your privates until we are officially dating

  85. Strange_Lead_9678 Avatar

    48F with not a ton of experience. Man, your a dying breed let me tell ya

  86. Psykoplatypus Avatar

    I totally agree on that one!
    When I got divorced I did alot of hookups through tinder and Facebook, made me realize kissing is also more intimate for me, than having sex. I don’t kiss with one nightstands!

  87. Highlander0001 Avatar

    No you aren’t..it’s about the most intimate thing you can do.

  88. Fresh_Replacement347 Avatar

    No, you’re not weird.

  89. coderedmountaindewd Avatar

    Have to share the College Humor video about this:

    https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=mXz-pCaINHc

  90. Accurate_Delay6135 Avatar

    I be spitting the same thing, oral is more intimate than sex. But if you think about is tossing of the salad even more intimate than oral?

  91. Solid_Noise1850 Avatar

    I am on the fence. I am sitting here thinking what sex act would make me more upset if my spouse cheated.

  92. sthunt1987 Avatar

    Being comfortable if/when your SO ruins the bathroom for about 20 minutes is true intimacy.

    What op asked, oral or otherwise gives enjoyment. ..however..

    Walking into that bathroom after them to go pee… and go sit on the couch and finish that movie with them. Maybe you make a joke about it or you don’t mention it. Just is what it is.

    sorry for the youngsters, but that’s about max level intimacy in my opinion.

  93. Massive-Log6151 Avatar

    I feel the same way about it

  94. Decent_Beginning2486 Avatar

    I agree as well. Definitely more intimate in my book.

  95. Salsentorishka Avatar
  96. Audinissa Avatar

    Hard agree. My husband always thought it was super intimate since my mouth is what I use to share my dreams, thoughts, ideas, etc and I choose to give that up during oral.

  97. Time_Relationship125 Avatar

    Really??? I always thought oral was just a quicker way to pregnancy 😆 I’m jk. I agree with you, and I’ve always considered oral to be intimate as well. You’re not alone in that thinking.

  98. Lucina337 Avatar

    I think it’s logical. Intercourse is easy and serves you both with direct pleasure. Oral sex is you putting in effort in giving direct pleasure to someone else and not yourself (apart from indirect pleasure of seeing/hearing them enjoy). Doing it well generally takes some sense of comfort and trust, and getting to know someone well enough to know and figure out how they like it and that requires care, dedication and conscious effort.

    My lazy ass wouldn’t go to those lengths for a random hookup only to get my needs met, so only for someone who I really care about wanting to please. Wanting to go through the sensitive trial and error process of oral sex in order to succesfully please someone is intimate af.

  99. KWil2020 Avatar

    My wife definitely thinks there’s an added level of intimacy when I’m going down on her or if she’s sitting on my face because I’m the only one who has done that with her. Whereas, she’s been with other men before for the usual thing

  100. blacehylek Avatar

    It’s where our words come from

  101. Mr-Bry-Guy Avatar

    We need more like you. 🙌🏾

  102. lbowen92 Avatar

    I get where you’re coming from. I’ve rarely allowed a man to go down on me as it’s their face so close to my most personal area.

  103. lewjr Avatar

    Had a female friend explain that exact thing to me recently. She said sex is an act two people do. Each one getting something out of it (hopefully)… Also with sex there are things like condoms to create that barrier. Between you two.
    With oral its something you actively do mostly one at a time, for the pleasure of the other person. She feels if she is just dating/hooking up with a guy, she has not developed that level of intimacy to do that to him.
    Also said when it comes to hookups she does not do oral because of the fear of getting some std around her mouth.

  104. secrerofficeninja Avatar

    In ‘Pretty Woman’, Julia Roberts would have sex and give oral but she would not kiss her clients as that was too personal.

    Makes sense actually if you think about sex as a transactional thing.

    Hmmmm….yeah, I guess even as a man when I go down on a woman, that is another level of trust and vulnerability than intercourse. Something about your face being directly involved maybe?