We've all experienced a bad kiss. Whether the person's breath smelled like red onions or they used way too much tongue, it's an experience you're unlikely to forget.
So how do you prevent yourself from becoming someone else's bad kiss story? Here are a few tips on what to avoid when going in for your next kiss.
Some people lead with the tongue and I truly don't understand why. The tongue is a garnish: If things are going well with the tongue then cool, use more tongue. Otherwise, keep the training wheels on for a while, lest you scare her.
While everyone produces a different amount of saliva, you can control the amount that ends up on your kissing partner's face.
Try not to push too much saliva out of your mouth while kissing and be careful with how wide the motions of your mouth are. If you're getting their chin wet, you've probably gone too far. No one should need a towel for their face after a make-out session.
This is not chess. It's kissing. And while it's tempting to want to overanalyze what the other person will probably do next so you can be #prepared, all it really does is take you out of the moment, which the opposite of where you want to be.
This is a weird in-between where you’re bold enough to really get in there with the tongue in the first place, but too self-conscious to actually move it around. It’s basically a heavy tongue blanket for my own tongue: impractical, confusing, and a lose-lose for everyone involved.
Pressure can be a great thing but if you feel like they're leaning away from you to alleviate some of that pressure, ease up. That said...
A lot of the time, the way your partner is kissing you is the way your partner wants to be kissed. So in the beginning especially, pay attention to how they're kissing you and where they're kissing you because in all likelihood, that's what they're hoping for on your end as well.
If you're bored, you're not doing it right.
Men, on the whole, may see kissing as a stop on the road to sex, whereas many women concentrate on the act of kissing itself, according to a study in the journal of Evolutionary Psychology. No matter how you see a kiss, if you're thinking about what's coming next or what you're going to make for dinner that night, you're not going to perform your best.
Don't go through the motions. If you care about the person, kissing can be an important way to connect with them physically.
If you're ready to pass out, you have a problem.
Your partner may take your breath away, but you should still be able to breathe during your kiss.
If you're having trouble breathing, it may mean the two of you are smooshing your noses together or in an uncomfortable position.
If you make yourselves comfortable and still can't breathe, just take a quick break every few moments and take a breath. Your partner will still be there when you're done.
Switch it up.
A peck is always nice, but if you're only kissing on the lips, you're doing it wrong.
The book "The Science of Kissing" showed that women love to be kissed on the neck, but even if you're kissing another gender, it doesn't hurt to switch it up. Kiss their neck, ears, cheek, shoulder — you name it.
This shows that you have range and will keep them guessing, so don't limit yourself.
Now this is interesting. We know that our menstrual cycle can alter moods, and it can alter your value of kisses as well. Research has shown that people are most critical about one's kissing during their most fertile time of the month. A week earlier, a mediocre kiss might have cut it. But during that fertile window? Oh, hell no. Gotta step ya game up.
You might have heard of the old school concept that many sex workers don't kiss clients because it's too intimate. Well, that notion isn't entirely wrong. In fact, it's not wrong at all. It's all about how society has socialized us to see kissing as something that creates a special bond--platonic or otherwise. Kissing has always been depicted as a very emotional--tender, touching, sweet--act in a way that sex simply isn't.
