Kissing

Kissing is one of the most common ways to express affection. We may kiss our parents, our siblings, our friends, or other people in our lives. And then there are the kisses that happen between romantic or sexual partners.

Some people look forward to their first romantic kiss and may remember it for the rest of their lives. But kissing isn’t for everyone, and that’s okay too.

How do you kiss someone on the mouth in a romantic way?

Everyone kisses a little bit differently and there are lots of good online articles and videos about how to kiss. Here are some basics:

• Ask your partner if it’s okay to kiss them/Tell your partner they can kiss you if they want to. Consent is important, even for kissing!
• Lean towards each other, remembering to tilt your head to the side a bit until you make contact.
• Pucker your lips so they are soft and relaxed, but not too floppy. They can be fully formed and firm, but maybe not hard.
• Make contact with your partner’s lips.
• Hold the kiss for a few seconds before relaxing the pucker in your lips and then start to pull your heads back. You can hold the kiss like this for longer or shorter if your want.
• You can breathe normally through your nose as you kiss.
• To end the kiss, start by easing the pressure a bit and relax your puckered lips.
• As your lips relax they will separate and a small amount of air will be sucked into your mouth. This will create the kissing noise, or “smack” that is identified with a kiss.

What is a French kiss?

• French kissing is also known as kissing with tongue. It is when you kiss without puckering your lips, so more of an open-mouth kiss, and touch your tongues together or just put them in each other’s mouths.
• French kissing is maybe not a good idea on the first kiss but it can be fun and healthy when things heat up. Check in with each other to see if that’s something you both want to try.

Will kissing expose me to any STIs?

• Not really. You can’t get HIV, chlamydia or syphilis from kissing, but you can get cold sores from kissing which are caused by the Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1 (also known as HSV-1)
• You can use a dental dam when kissing someone’s body where they have or might have an STI. For more information on dental dams, check out our info page [Link].
• For more information on STIs and how to protect yourself check out our section on STIs.

Can pregnancy happen from kissing?

• No, you cannot get pregnant from just kissing someone. Pregnancy can only occur if sperm is ejaculated in or on a person’s vagina.
• For more on how pregnancy happens, check out How Pregnancy Happens.

If you have questions about this topic, feel free to contact one of our peer educators. [Link]

Last Edited: August 2021