Alex is a straightlaced 26-year-old who works on Wall Street and has a closet full of conservatively cut suits and spiffy wing tips. But underneath his pinstripes, Alex has a secret. He wears women's underwear.
"I love panties," confesses the New Jersey native. "I remember when I was little, my babysitter would do her laundry at our house. Seeing her underwear made me dizzy." By high school, Alex knew he had a full-on fetish. He made regular trips to Victoria's Secret to buy undies for his "girlfriend." He abandoned briefs and boxers for bikinis and thongs. "I honestly thought I was the only person in the world who was into that kind of thing," he says. "Now, I'm pretty sure I'm not."
These days, a little snooping and surfing turns up proof that fetishists are far from alone. There are thousands of Web sites devoted to every fetish imaginable. Thanks to the relative anonymity of the Internet, kinky sex is no longer the clandestine activity it once was. Whether you're in the closet about your fetish, or just plain curious about kink, we've got the FAQs on fetishes and more.
What Is a Fetish?
The origins of the word "fetish" can be traced back to the Portuguese word "fetico," which means "charmed" or "obsessive fascination." By that definition, anyone who collects matchbooks or magnets might be said to have a fetish. Today, fetishes are generally thought of as inanimate objects or body parts that have the power to sexually arouse someone. Not to be confused with the BDSM (Bondage, Dominance and Sadomasochism) scene, a sexual fetish deals with objects (latex clothing, lingerie, shoes).
The (Unofficial) Top Five Fetishes
- Feet/Footwear
- Women's clothing
- Medical equipment
- Rubber/Latex
- Smoking
Are Fetishes Common?
"Based on what we see on the Internet and increases in magazine and video sales, it's safe to say that there's lots of interest. But there's little in the way of researched statistics on the prevalence of fetishism and degree of it in the general population," says Louanne Cole Weston, Ph.D, a board-certified sex therapist in Sacramento, CA. That means we don't know for sure what the top fetishes are, what type of person is prone to fetishism, or even what causes a fetish.
