Celibacy is all the rage online. Here's why.

Let’s talk about sex — more specifically, about the fact that some of us are opting not to have it. Celibacy is a hot topic in pop culture, evidenced by the return of the Netflix series Too Hot To Handle, where contestants attempt to abstain from sex for prize money. Beyond Netflix, people — women in particular — are opening up about their decision to be celibate online and coining terms about it like “boy sober.” Between 2007 and 2017, the number of young men and women having casual sex both dropped, according to a 2021 paper in the sociological research journal Socius. The paper’s authors stated that this decline is consistent with the general decrease in sex young adults are experiencing. SEE ALSO: I got stood up. I refuse to let dating app culture break my spirit. But is the way we talk about celibacy helpful, or does it reinforce unhelpful stigma and stereotypes? Why are so many women choosing to be celibate?Choosing to be celibate could stem from a range of personal reasons, from experiences of sexual violence to looking inward and figuring out what one actually wants.Gabrielle, 26, decided to go celibate after getting hurt too many times in the dating scene and wanting to reevaluate her priorities. “Being celibate has been a game-changer for me,” she tells Mashable. Gabrielle and others are referred to by their first names only for privacy reasons.”It’s not about punishing myself or depriving myself of pleasure. It’s about taking control of my own…Celibacy is all the rage online. Here's why.