Intimacy & Communication
When one partner wants penetration and the other doesn't, clitoral suckers like the Lem shift the entire equation. Here's how to make this work.
Let's be real. When one partner's pleasure map doesn't include penetration, a lot of couples get stuck. One person feels rejected. The other feels pressured. Nobody wins.
Here's the thing that changes everything: framing pleasure as something that happens to your clit, not something that requires a specific act. A lemon clitoral vibrator, or a lemon sucker like the Lem, completely reorients that conversation. It's not a consolation prize for skipping penetration. It's often better than penetration.
About 40 percent of people with vulvas don't come from penetration alone. For some, penetration feels uncomfortable or dysphoric. Others find it simply neutral. And a lot of people prefer clitoral stimulation so intensely that anything else feels like a distraction.
Meanwhile, their partner might have built their entire sexual identity around penetration. They learned sex that way. They enjoy it. They assumed their partner did too.
When you collide those two things without talking about it explicitly, you get resentment disguised as "incompatibility." The real problem isn't your bodies. It's that you're trying to use the same script for two totally different desires.
A lemon vibrator, or any clitoral sucker, doesn't fix communication issues. But it does create permission to have a different conversation entirely.
Here's what I tell couples in my practice: instead of thinking about sex as a thing you do together that has one shape, think of it as a menu where different nights have different priorities.
Some nights are about what your partner wants. Some nights are about what you want. Some nights you find overlap. The Lem vibrator, or another lemon clitoral vibrator, becomes your tool for nights when pleasure is centered on clitoral stimulation.
This is radical permission for some couples because nobody has told them this is allowed.
Your partner can absolutely be present, engaged, and connected while you use a clitoral sucker. They can touch you somewhere else. They can watch. They can be inside you while you use it. They can sit next to you. The point is that you're both choosing this together, which means you're not fighting about it anymore.
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Don't start by saying "I want to buy a sex toy because penetration doesn't work for me." That sounds like an accusation, even when it's not.
Instead: "I want to explore what makes my body feel best, and I think having a tool that focuses on clitoral stimulation would help both of us understand what I actually enjoy. I want you involved in this."
That reframes it as something you're building together, not something you're doing around them.
Show them the Lem vibrator or other lemon clitoral suckers if you're drawn to them. Tell them how it works. Explain that it doesn't replace anything they do. It's an addition. Let them ask questions without judgment.
If they're nervous about it, that's normal. A lot of partners worry that a toy means they're not enough. You might need to say directly: "This isn't about you being inadequate. It's about me knowing my own body better. And that actually makes sex better for both of us because I know what I want."
That's true. It is better. Partners who feel connected to what genuinely turns their person on have better sex than partners guessing blindly.
If your partner is still interested in penetration happening, here are ways to combine them without it feeling like a negotiation.
Your partner enters you first. Once they're inside, you use the lemon clitoral vibrator on yourself. This works beautifully because penetration provides internal sensation and the Lem provides external sensation at the same time. A lot of people find this combination creates deeper orgasms than either alone.
Alternatively, they can stay inside you without thrusting while you use the sucker. Just the presence of them inside you, without the motion, can feel deeply intimate and connected without requiring penetration to be the main event.
Or you can use the vibrator solo while your partner touches you somewhere else. Your breasts. Your neck. Your inner thighs. They're not just watching. They're still physically there.
The point is that you're designing this together instead of forcing someone's preferred pleasure into a shape that doesn't fit.
Some partners feel more connected when they're actively involved. If yours does, the Lem vibrator actually makes that easier.
They can hold it for you. They can control the pattern. This gives them agency and lets them see exactly what makes you respond. A lot of partners find watching their person's face, body, and breathing change as stimulation intensifies incredibly arousing. Suddenly they're not "outside" the experience. They're orchestrating it.
Talk about this beforehand. "I'd love if you'd use this on me sometimes" is different than expecting them to figure it out.
If they're worried they'll do it wrong, let them know there's basically no wrong way. The Lem and other lemon sexual toys are pretty forgiving. Show them the pattern options. Let them experiment while you give feedback.
This is where the emotional work becomes foreplay, and honestly, that's where the best sex starts.
Sometimes the resistance isn't really about the toy. It's about control, or validation, or feeling wanted in a specific way.
If your partner struggles with the idea that you don't want penetration, that might be worth unpacking with a therapist, especially if it's tied to feeling masculine or desirable. Those are real feelings. They deserve attention. But they also can't be your problem to fix by having sex you don't want.
Similarly, if you've been faking orgasms or pretending to enjoy penetration for years, your partner might feel blindsided when you finally say so. That's grief. That's readjusting. That takes time.
Introducing a lemon clitoral vibrator isn't a band-aid for that. But it is a tool that says: we can still have great sex together, just differently than before.
Most couples who work through this find that sex actually becomes better because it's based on what actually works instead of what they think should work.
If you're new to clitoral suckers, start with the lowest setting. The Lem has multiple patterns, but you don't need to jump to intensity right away. Your clit is sensitive, and you want to build arousal gradually.
Use water-based lubricant with the vibrator. You don't need a ton. A small amount helps the suction seal properly and makes the whole experience more comfortable. Silicone lube can damage silicone toys, so stick with water-based.
If your partner is using it on you, make sure you tell them if pressure feels off. "A little lighter" or "can you angle it slightly down" is helpful feedback. They want to get this right. Let them.
And honestly? The first time might feel awkward. You're introducing something new into a dynamic that might already feel complicated. That's okay. Second and third times are usually better once everyone's over the initial weirdness.
I've worked with couples where one partner had a medical condition that made penetration painful. Others where one partner was asexual and wanted intimacy without penetration. Still others where desire levels just didn't match and both partners needed permission to want different things.
In almost every case, introducing a lemon clitoral vibrator did something unexpected. It made pleasure the center of the conversation instead of whether one specific act was happening. And that completely changed the dynamic.
You stopped fighting about who wants what and started building a sex life that works for both of you. That's when real intimacy happens.
If penetration isn't working but you both want to stay sexually connected, absolutely. Clitoral suckers like the Lem prioritize what actually creates orgasms for most people with vulvas. That makes them valuable regardless of what else is happening.
Possibly, initially. That's why the conversation matters more than the toy. If your partner understands that this isn't about them being "not enough" but about you knowing your own body better, most people adjust quickly. Some people even find it genuinely hot to see their partner with a tool that makes them feel amazing.
Yes, absolutely. Sometimes the thing that needed to happen was permission to admit that your current setup wasn't working. A toy becomes the conversation starter, not the problem itself.
Then you have an even bigger conversation about desire and what each of you wants. But honestly, that's information you needed anyway. Better to know it now.
As often as feels good. Some couples use it every time. Some use it occasionally when they know that's what creates the best orgasm. There's no "should." The point is you're choosing together.
That's real information about your body. You're allowed to want what you want. The conversation is just: okay, so moving forward, how do we build a sex life around what both of us actually enjoy? That might mean penetration stops. It might mean it happens less. It might mean it happens differently. But you're figuring it out together instead of pretending.
A lemon clitoral vibrator isn't a fix for relationship problems. But it is permission to stop forcing someone's pleasure into a shape that doesn't fit.
When one partner isn't interested in penetration, the conversation you need is: what do both of us actually want, and how do we build a sex life around that instead of around what we think should happen?
A Lem vibrator or another lemon sucker gives you a tool to center clitoral pleasure without anyone feeling like they're compromising. That changes everything.
If you're ready to explore this together, check out our contact page to learn more about what might work for your relationship dynamic.