It's a question as old as time itself: how long do you leave it before you sleep with a new partner?
A lot people go by the 'three date rule,' which encourages people to not be physically intimate with each other until at least the third encounter.
It's thought that by that time each person would be interested in continuing the relationship because any earlier and one person might get bored and head off.
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But according to one sex expert, women should wait a hell of a lot longer than that before getting down and dirty.
Journalist and author of The Case Against the Sexual Revolution: A New Guide to Sex in the 21st Century, Louise Perry is known for being avidly against casual sex.
Most recently, she explained why she thinks women should wait until they're engaged to sleep with their partner.
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Appearing on Steven Bartlett's Diary of a CEO podcast, the sex expert shared that having sex before you've got a ring on your finger is a 'big risk,' explaining that if women waited until they were engaged, they would be less likely to get caught up in emotions.
"A lot of young women go along with [casual sex] even if they don't want it. That causes a lot of misery because women in particular tend to get more emotionally bonded from sex more than men do," she said.
Louise also noted that you should only sleep with someone if you want to have children with them.
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"Having sex with a man you don't want to get pregnant by is a bad decision and a big risk," she added.
The expert also shared her stance on porn during the podcast appearance, expressing that x-rated films are 'dangerous' and 'should be banned.'
"It's so exploitative and causes so much psychological and physical harm," she added.
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But, while a lot of Louise's points could be considered old-fashioned, there's one thing we can all agree on. Between dating apps, the talking stage, situationships and TikTok relationship tests, dating is becoming an increasingly 'complicated game.'
She explained: "You have to find the right person, you have to find them at the right time, you have to ensure commitment from them."
"And of course, there's this whole game about how men may want to have sex with more people and a woman wants to tie a man down, it's really a complicated game and society has comes up with ways of regulating it."
Topics: Sex and Relationships, News
Bec Oakes