The corona-related curfews and contact bans of the last weeks also influence the sex lives of people in Germany. How exactly #stayhome has affected love, partnership and intimacy has been investigated by sex toy manufacturer Fun Factory in two surveys.
More satisfaction in the partnership thanks to deceleration
Because of the Corona restrictions, people had to put up with numerous deprivations and largely avoid social contacts. This had an impact on many areas of life – including sex life.
Love, intimacy and togetherness could no longer be practiced as before – that is indisputable. But what specifically changed – both positively and negatively? What opportunities did people have to live out their sexuality in Corona times? The north German sex toy manufacturer Fun Factory surveyed 1,100 of its own members – just under 300 singles and around 850 people in a relationship. The two surveys provide revealing results.
For example, 80 percent of respondents in a relationship say that they get along with their partner just as well as before or even better since #stayhome. What’s striking is that 60 percent of them are in a long-term relationship that has lasted more than 10 years.
So it turns out that couples who have been caught up in the same daily grind over time have found more to each other again as a result of the curfew and now have a happier partnership. One survey participant reports, “We talk more with each other, also quite consciously and intensively about feelings, fears and expectations of each other.”
Unsurprisingly, when asked about their basic satisfaction in Corona times, a full 73 percent of respondents answered that nothing had changed in this regard or that they were doing better. Deceleration is obviously good for most people.
Willingness to experiment increases
More intimacy and togetherness: Many couples have this wish. For example, 60 percent of male and female survey participants in a relationship say they would like to have more direct physical contact with their partner, such as hugging or holding hands. And Corona time represents a good opportunity to finally follow this up with action. Two-thirds of respondents are aware of this, and since #stayhome they have been exchanging innocuous caresses with their partner more often than before. One survey participant says: “We live our relationship more intensively. We already touch each other more and the sex is more conscious, better and more intense. The situation has deepened our relationship.”
In the current situation, many are getting to know themselves and their partner in a whole new way. More time is spent together, which has rekindled love. Even the willingness to try new things sexually sometimes increases. For example, 42 percent of people in a relationship say that social isolation with their partner has made them more willing to experiment. For 16 percent, even sex toys have taken on a higher priority again in the partnership.
Solo sex has become more important to many – not just singles
Singles were also surveyed by Fun Factory. Of those who have had to endure #stayhome without a partner, 31 percent say they miss dating. 34 percent even feel so constrained by the current situation that the longing for a real partnership is greater than ever.
Nevertheless, many singles have found a solution to not having to forgo the satisfaction of their sexual needs despite social isolation – with solo sex. Masturbation is back in fashion in the Corona era. And for good reasons: For one thing, people – especially singles – need an alternative to real sex, and for another, thanks to home offices and more flexible working hours, many have more time again to accommodate private needs.
But what do the concrete figures look like? 25 percent of singles masturbate more often since #stayhome than before, and around two-thirds are currently having sex just as often and regularly as before. Half also experiment more and value variety – in some cases even with sex toys. Thus, 33 percent of singles state that they have used sex toys more often during the Corona period when having solo fun.
Interestingly, couples are also anything but averse to masturbatory pleasure at the moment. 27 percent say they have more desire for solo sex than in the pre-Corona era.
Rising sales figures for sex toys
The fact that many couples are taking more time for love, intimacy and sex since #stayhome and that masturbation has become significantly more popular among both singles and couples is also reflected in the sales figures in the Fun Factory online store. According to the company’s own data, April 2020 was the best-selling month of the year, with a year-on-year sales increase of 50 percent to 150 percent at its peak.
The rising sales of sex toys and the results of the survey make it clear that the Corona period is not all downside. People can once again take more care of themselves and their partner, and singles as well as couples finally have time for some solo fun.