please, please, please...stop overthinking Sabrina Carpenter's 'Juno' positions

she's just espresso-ing herself

Sabrina Carpenter’s "Juno positions" have become an unexpected cultural moment—despite the fact that, let’s be honest, they’re about as groundbreaking as a Cosmo cover story from 2008.

Somehow, though, people have decided to clutch their pearls over moves that range from completely standard to slightly suggestive but nothing new. At least to this sex writer who’s been writing in the space since, oh, basically 2008 (give or take a few years).

“It’s nothing new that people are going to get up in arms about a woman being empowered by her own sexuality,” Babeland’s sex educator Lisa Finn tells me via email. “For Sabrina, especially being a former Disney child star, people are upset by her promotion of sexuality as a positive thing on such a large platform, and that there are children attending these concerts. Let’s be honest, the lyrics (read: “Wanna try out my fuzzy pink handcuffs? / I’m so fucking horny”) should have put the kibosh on conservative parents wanting to protect their kids from being exposed to this, but hey, blame the artist who never claimed to be making this music for kids. And even then, “Juno” is nothing compared to some of the other lyrics that have been zipping through the pop lexicon for as long as I can remember.”

Friends, even The Backstreet Boys once sang: “If You Want It To Be Good Girl (Get Yourself A Bad Boy).” And I don’t remember anything being said about that when I was in high school! But then again, they are boys.

Anyway, I wanted to talk to Lisa about what Sabrina’s “Juno” performance is actually highlighting — besides blatant misogyny — that switching up positions in the bedroom can be fun and provocative for partners who are in a bit of a rut.

“It can be nice to have a reliable default position that we know works for us, but keeping your play to just that one position can limit you from experiencing new types of sensation,” Lisa says. “Beyond that, our bodies can get used to the stimulation from a single position, meaning that we may not be as in tune with our bodies if there’s nothing fresh or exciting that’s keeping our attention. Sex can begin to feel formulaic, and we can even find that it can become harder to reach climax over time from the same stimulation without any variety.”

So, below, you’ll find a mix of some of the “Juno” positions that people are scandalized by for no reason, plus a few that actually could be considered risqué. Lisa goes through them, describing what they are, how to do them at home, and why you might want to try them out for yourself. Enjoy!

The Juno Positions That Aren’t Even That Risqué, Yet People Are Freaking Out

• The Straddle – One partner sits on the other’s lap, facing them.

• The Reverse Straddle – Same as above, but facing away.

“A super-easy way to switch up positions? Get onto a new surface. Having sex in a seat like a chair or couch is an easy (and often accessible) way to change not only the physicality of your positions, but to experience a new environment besides the bed for exploration. Having the receiving partner sit on the giver’s lap can allow for deeper penetration, and the receiver can have better control of rhythm and depth by using their legs or knees (on a broader seat like a couch) to move and bounce their body onto their partner, instead of the partner doing the thrusting.”

• The Lotus – A seated, cross-legged position with close body contact.

“If you like depth and clitoral contact with your penetration, the Lotus can be a great position to try out. With both partners seated, legs wrapped around one another (almost criss-cross or pretzel style), this position relies on more of a grinding motion for movement than it does your standard P-in-V thrusting. This one can also be really intimate, because of how close your bodies are intertwined, and being so face-to-face makes for some really hot eye contact or the perfect angle for a heavy make-out sesh.”

The Juno Positions That are Actually Spicier