All posts tagged: Pleasure

Breaking the Cycle of Anxiety and Lost Pleasure

Breaking the Cycle of Anxiety and Lost Pleasure

Published by Jenni Sidey

In a recent post, “Reclaiming Joy With Positive Affect Treatment” (PAT), I wrote about how lost pleasure isn’t just a symptom of anxiety or depression—it’s a distinct problem we now have a powerful, targeted therapy to treat. Long before PAT had a name, I was writing about this same brain-body cycle in my book. The excerpt below from my book, Why Good Sex Matters (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2020), traces how anxiety and anhedonia feed into each other. It can manifest either as a depressive flatness in which there is little or no motivation or, alternatively, as a cycle of endless seeking without satisfaction that can drive compulsive behaviors leading to addiction. Either way, anxiety-fueled anhedonia is a painful state that robs us of presence and joy in everyday life. Anxiety-Fueled Anhedonia and Finding Pleasure Again Indeed, when it comes to anxiety, there is definitely too much of a good thing. Persistent, unremitting anxiety will deplete your resources, both physical and emotional, until depression takes root and triggers or reinforces even more anhedonia. It’s a vicious …

Why play brings us pleasure

Why play brings us pleasure

Published by Jenni Sidey

Since the days of ancient Greece, thinkers have grappled with the mystery of why humans and other animals play. Survival is hard, so why waste energy? Over the years, theories have ranged from Plato’s simple picture of play as skill rehearsal to ever more esoteric ideas about surplus energy, Freudian catharsis, and vestigial “primitive instincts.” These days, developmental psychologists mostly see play as a way of gathering information about the world and our place in it. But there’s something missing from this picture, according to Marc Malmdorf Andersen, a cognitive scientist at Aarhus University in Denmark. “Yes, it’s about learning about the world,” he says. “Everyone agrees that play is really good for that. But no one really deals with the fun aspect. Why is it that it’s so rewarding?” In 2023, Andersen and three colleagues published what they dubbed a “cognitive theory of play,” seeking to explain play within the framework of the newest, hottest theory of everything in brain science: predictive processing.  Play spurs children to learn about themselves and the world, but …

Why ‘Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed’ Should Be On Your Watchlist

Why ‘Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed’ Should Be On Your Watchlist

Published by Jenni Sidey

Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed’s Paula (Tatiana Maslany) has a lot of the usual challenges single moms face. Her job is both demanding and underpaid. She doesn’t get as much time with her daughter as she would like, so she volunteers to coach her soccer team. Her ex and his new wife treat Paula like a speed bump on the road to their happy new life together. But Paula also has some problems that may be slightly outside the norm: her regular cam boy has apparently been attacked and kidnapped during one of their sessions, and now Paula’s being threatened with the release of compromising videos of her from their time together if Paula doesn’t pay his five-figure ransom. So yeah—Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed, whose fourth episode premieres next week, blends comedy, drama, mystery, and even pulse-pounding youth sports action. Here are five more reasons why it should be on your watchlist. 1. It’s not puritanical about sex work. Courtesy of AppleTV If you’ve watched a cop show since about 1995, you’ve seen the internet portrayed as the …

Apple TV’s ‘super addictive’ thriller Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed is your next TV obsession

Apple TV’s ‘super addictive’ thriller Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed is your next TV obsession

Published by Daniella Wilson

Looking for a twisty dark comedy to sink your teeth into this week? Apple TV has just released the new ten-part thriller, Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed. As a huge New Girl fan, I’ll watch anything starring Jake Johnson – but the cast isn’t the only reason why I’ll be tuning into the show this week. This tense, darkly comic thriller sounds seriously binge-worthy.  © Apple TVTatiana Maslany stars in Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed Created by David J. Rosen (Sugar), the story follows a newly divorced woman (Tatiana Maslany) who, in the midst of a custody battle, connects with a camboy online and becomes embroiled in a dangerous web of blackmail and murder. The series kicked off with a two-episode premiere on 20 May, with new episodes dropping weekly after that. If you’re like me and prefer to binge the whole thing in one sitting, you might want to wait until the finale drops on 15 July. Keep reading to find out more. What is Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed about?  The story follows Paula, a newly divorced fact-checker, as she …

‘Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed’: A Nervy Thriller for the Scam Era

‘Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed’: A Nervy Thriller for the Scam Era

Published by Daniella Wilson

To have one OnlyFans-themed show debut on Apple TV this spring seems timely; to have two feels either like an acknowledgment of just how much our most intimate relationships are mediated through screens now, or like a cry for help. Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed, created by David J. Rosen, stars Tatiana Maslany as Paula, a professional fact-checker and divorced mother in the middle of a messy custody battle whose preferred way of decompressing is videochatting with a beguiling online performer named Trevor (Brandon Flynn). Their interactions usually end up being sexual, but what seems even more compelling to Paula is having someone to talk with—someone who listens, asks thoughtful questions about her life, and pays her genuine, if compensated, attention. During one of their calls, Trevor gets up to answer the door and is attacked by a masked man while a horrified Paula can only watch, recording everything she sees on her phone. When she goes to the police, she’s told it’s likely a scam—that she’ll soon get a call asking for money, which she does, …

7 Luxury Accessories That Make Travelling A Pleasure

7 Luxury Accessories That Make Travelling A Pleasure

Published by Akaay

Being on vacation is great. But getting there? Not so much. Assuming you aren’t a private-jet-owning billionaire with the ability to travel like a king, chances are you’re getting to your destination crammed into an uncomfortable seat with an unpleasant wait and lots of standing in queues either side. With that in mind, anything that might add a touch of luxury to the experience, no matter how small, is worth having. Luxury travel accessories, like high-quality luggage, nice headphones and a comfy travel pillow, will elevate your journey whether you’re feeling fancy in first class or kicking it in coach. These are the bits and bobs that will turn your travels from a reluctant necessity into something you actually look forward to, allowing you to relax in comfort, stride through the departures lounge in style, and arrive at your destination feeling refreshed and ready to unwind. There’s no shortage of luxury travel accessories, but not all are worth forking out for. Below, we’ve handpicked some of our must-have luxury travel treats with the need-to-know info …

A simple at-home sexual fantasy exercise increases pleasure and reduces distress

A simple at-home sexual fantasy exercise increases pleasure and reduces distress

Published by José Betancourt

A new study published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine provides evidence that repeatedly engaging in structured sexual fantasies can improve a person’s sexual well-being and desire. Researchers found that writing about erotic scenarios a few times a week tends to reduce sexual distress and performance worries while increasing overall sexual pleasure. These findings suggest that simple cognitive exercises done at home can act as an effective tool for enhancing relationship intimacy and personal sexual health. Human sexual functioning relies heavily on where people direct their attention. Attention controls how individuals perceive and process sexual information in their environment. People can focus their attention externally on physical stimuli, but they can also direct it internally toward their own thoughts and imagination. This internal attention powers sexual fantasies. When people use their imagination to create vivid mental images, they engage cognitive processes that support emotional regulation and memory. In the context of sexuality, these internally generated mental images act as incentives that activate sexual arousal even without physical stimulation. Research suggests that a higher frequency of …

Nymphomaniacs and sex droughts: what I learned while studying women’s pleasure | Women

Nymphomaniacs and sex droughts: what I learned while studying women’s pleasure | Women

Published by Sam Flores

All across the world, you will probably have read, people are having less sex. In Britain and the US, in France and Australia, frequency of sex has been on the decline (although Denmark appears to be bucking the trend). In 2018, the US magazine the Atlantic declared a “sex recession”, while last December the Telegraph ran a piece headlined “Sex is dying out. This is why it matters”. As an ancient historian with a particular interest in the history of sex, this drought is fascinating to me – not least because some of the articles I have read seem keen to hark back to the historical period I spend most of my time researching. “Sex should be more wild and plentiful than it has been since ancient Greece,” reported the Telegraph. But antiquity was no bastion of sexual freedom – especially for women. While in the modern world men are often perceived as the hornier sex, ancient Greeks and Romans believed the opposite to be true. In fact, I might go so far as to …

Pop & Pleasure & Freedom | Jarrett Earnest

Pop & Pleasure & Freedom | Jarrett Earnest

Published by Jenni Sidey

In the prologue to his first collection of essays, The Dyer’s Hand (1962), W.H. Auden explains why criticism is inescapably personal: Though the pleasure which works of art give us must not be confused with other pleasures that we enjoy, it is related to all of them simply by being our pleasure and not someone else’s. All the judgments, aesthetic or moral, that we pass, however objective we try to make them, are in part a rationalization and in part a corrective discipline of our subjective wishes. Therefore, Auden insists, as a matter of professional honesty critics should detail their “dream of Eden”—their notion, say, of a perfect day—up front so that readers will be able to judge their judgments. To that end he proposes a short questionnaire that would provide “the kind of information I should like to have myself when reading other critics,” including their preferred “Sources of Public Information” and “Public Entertainments”—in his case, respectively, “Gossip. Technical and learned periodicals but no newspapers” and “Religious Processions, Brass Bands, Opera, Classical Ballet. No …

New study reveals a striking gap between sexual pleasure and overall satisfaction in the U.S.

New study reveals a striking gap between sexual pleasure and overall satisfaction in the U.S.

Published by José Betancourt

A recent study evaluating sexual well-being in the United States suggests that while many people report positive and wanted sexual experiences, significant gaps remain in testing, communication, and overall satisfaction. Published in the Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy, the findings provide evidence of persistent gender disparities and a widespread lack of access to preventive care. These insights highlight the need for more comprehensive approaches to reproductive and sexual well-being across the country. Public health initiatives in the United States have historically approached sexual health through narrow categories. Government and state programs tend to focus on preventing specific diseases or managing family planning. This fragmented approach often ignores the holistic nature of sexual well-being. Scientists wanted to assess the country using a broader, more integrated framework. Recent changes in the legal landscape, such as restricted access to abortion and reproductive care, have created new challenges for public health. “I’ve spent much of my career thinking about how to measure sexual health in meaningful ways,” Jessie Ford, an assistant professor in the Department of Sociomedical Sciences …