Pandemic life has left us isolated, but now it’s time to re-connect.
With summer already here and “hot vaxxed summer” posts slowly overtaking our social media feeds, the thought of being intimate with others, even if you are fully vaxxed, is overwhelming. When we hear the word intimacy, we automatically think of sex, but it involves more than that. Intimacy means developing deep emotional relationships and closeness both romantically and platonically with others.
Despite the general eagerness to unleash our pent-up sexual tension after a year of pandemic isolation, putting ourselves back out there this summer - both physically and emotionally - is overall anxiety inducing. Luckily, you are not alone in this feeling and together we can begin to navigate being intimate with people outside of our little COVID bubbles.
Being in isolation for so long left many of us starving for human touch. Fortunately, it also gave us more time to figure out what we need out of our relationships as well as what we are willing to put into them. While a summer of casual sex is popping up in a slew of media articles, experts are saying differently. Sex-researcher, Justin Garcia, says this summer is going be about investing more in each other. Our collective loneliness this past year has changed how we approach our intimate relationships, leading us to desire deeper emotional connections beyond physical closeness.
To help you overcome your intimacy anxieties, we have a few tips and questions for you to ponder so you can live your best vaxxed life this summer. Before you can build the kind of meaningful connections you desire, it’s important to take a step back and look inside yourself.
In order to think about what you really want out of your relationships, ask yourself these questions:
Are you looking for something causal or are you ready to commit yourself more to others?
Personally, I’m manifesting some hot make-outs this summer. But sexual needs aside, I’m keeping an open mind about meeting potential partners.
What part of yourself are you willing to share with others while still staying true to your personal identity?
This involves practicing self-disclosure. For me, this means being vulnerable about my lack of experience in the dating world since high school.
What brings you joy? How can you meet people who like the same things as you?
I recently made it a goal to up-cycle more of my clothes. Joining a sewing class would be a great way to meet others also passionate about slow fashion.
When we are honest with ourselves about what we are craving in our relationships, our anxieties about being intimate with others start to fade away.
For many of us, vaxxed summer 2021 is a re-entry into a new version of normalcy. So, hear us out when we say, we get why being intimate with someone is bringing up some anxiety. Whether you are manifesting a casual hook-up, a hot summer make-out, or simply a genuine conversation with a stranger, just know we are all remembering what it means to be intimate.
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