FOUR READERS SHARE THEIR TALES OF AWKWARD SEX...

GLORIA MAPHOSA, 25, MECHANICAL DRAUGHTSMAN

“I dated a lovely guy who said the right things and would turn me on by talking dirty. When we eventually slept together, the few minutes he was on top felt like hours. Not wanting to embarrass him, I pretended and moaned. I was disappointed, and pegged the awful performance down to nerves. He was convinced he had shown me a great time. While we were together, the floundering became his standard. In the end, I blamed myself for not speaking up and guiding him.”

SHWESHWE KABO, 29, BROADCAST JOURNALIST

“My ex-boyfriend was someone I’d known my whole life. In our late teens, he’d wax lyrical about how banging my body was and how, if he ever got a chance to have sex with me, I’d tie him to my bedpost and beg him to never leave afterwards. He was also the type to tell every ear willing to listen how well-endowed he was.

We started dating in our mid 20s and our first few sexual encounters were surprising. The strokes were weak, the confidence I’d known him for vanished and yet at the end, he was still pompous. Needless to say, the relationship didn’t live to see the three-month mark [chuckles].”

ELIZABETH KGOSANA, 27, RETAIL ASSISTANT

“A perfect gentleman swept me off my feet for four months. We would ‘sext’, send nude pics and have sexually charged video calls. When we eventually spent our first weekend together, the foreplay was amazing, but he couldn’t get an erection — which meant no sex the entire weekend. We skirted around the issue.

The following week I visited him again, fully armed with sexy lingerie and a plan to strip dance for him. He still couldn’t get it up all night. I was furious , dumped him via a text message and that was the end of us.”

ZANDILE MPANZA , 28, IT TECHNICIAN

“I’d be silently fuming with frustration after each sexual encounter while my boyfriend slept merrily next to me, unaware of my annoyance. At first I let him believe that I was fine. As time went on, he couldn’t get an erection and on the occasions when he did, it wouldn’t last long. I suggested professional help. He opted for traditional remedies, but those didn’t work. We ended the relationship because I could no longer stick around when my sexual needs weren’t being met.”