Dating & mating amid COVID-19

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Krysta Anderson

March 16, 2020

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The global pandemic known as COVID-19 has put a stop to just about everything in Jamaica – from travel to school, even events. So how does the virus factor into your sex life? Has it put a pause on pet and play?

In order to fully assess the situation, we first have to look at what COVID-19 is. Dr Daniel Thomas shared that according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the virus can be spread through “close contact” with someone who is infected, with close contact generally defined as being within six feet. “So if you’re kissing or having sex, you’re potentially at risk if your partner carries the virus and potentially at risk of spreading the virus,” he revealed. Additionally, persons, he says, can be infected with the virus for up to 24 days without showing any signs.

With that in mind, Flair asked a few women if COVID-19 has actually affected the ‘sugar and spice’ in their relationship. Here is what they had to say:

“So ‘bae’ started the conversation by saying that he wants to come over. And my response was, ‘Are you sure? Because with all of this happening, you sure you want to do that?’ When I did see him, we kissed on the cheek. Thinking about it, it’s really hard. He says that if we’re sick, we should just be sick together and done. Even if the virus is not that serious, which I think it is, why should I risk it? Right now, I don’t want anybody touching me; sex can wait.”

– Donnette Mason, 25, photographer

“To ensure the safety between the two of us, we just need to limit physical contact and socialisation with other people. So thinking about it, if we do that, the sex and kissing won’t have to stop. We just need to take necessary precautions on how we do our thing.”

– Deja Harris, 23, college student

“My boyfriend and I joke about plans to sleep in separate rooms, but we’re going to be rubbing up in the same bed and sheets because we normally bathe before bed. So French kissing will remain, and anything else goes; we’ll be in tune to regular programming.” –

Jody-Ann Ramsay, 30, make-up artist

“On the matter of safety and intimacy, if my partner has travelled in the last week or so and we’re just made aware of coronavirus but already kissed and laid upon his return, it shall continue because at this point, I would have already contracted the virus. If it isn’t the case where travel is concerned, but it’s here in the island, which it is, I would have to talk with him about who he has been in contact with over the past week and make a decision from there.”

– Tana-Kay Anderson, 33, media practitioner

“I do plan to avoid intimacy and my ‘boo’, to an extent, as I tend to be susceptible to viruses. So no kissing, really. We might still have sex, but in the recommended positions. This will give us an excuse to step outside of the box a bit and have fun. And there will certainly be no going out or sleeping over.”

– Rushelle Townsend, 27, chef

“There will be no French kiss for now, but we’re still going to have sex. We live together, and with this turn of events, we will be working from home, which is a controlled environment. So we’re not worried about exposure. All positions on deck.”

– Stephanie Wallace, 34, singer, author, and entrepreneur

Story by Krysta Anderson

krysta.anderson@gleanerjm.com

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Author

Krysta Anderson

Tackles sex and relationships with honesty and openness. For months, she took readers on a journey of self-exploration with personal dating column 'Single but Iffy to Mingle'. Now she's ready for an even bigger adventure.

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