(This post was first written for posting on the Aneros subreddit. Any formatting errors are likely due to the discrepancy between Reddit's and the Aneros site's methods of handling certain kinds of text.)
Just so I don't set up bad expectations for people looking to get into things with an Aneros, let me set down the ways in which I had kind of a leg up on getting the most out of the Aneros experience. And there are quite a few ways.
– I have been maintaining kegel muscle tone through casual use for about 15 years
– I have experienced hands-free orgasm before without the aid of any sort of toy, tool, accessory, or substance
– I am incredibly relaxed person–massages do nothing for me because there simply isn't any tension to massage out (side note, the bafflement of people who try to give me a massage anyway is priceless)
– Since puberty my most frequently consumed sex-related viewing material by far is fairly academic in nature–I know a lot of things about a lot of parts, and a lot of ways to be safe in sexual situations, including ones that I frankly never plan to be involved in
So, my girlfriend tripped across mention of the Aneros online, sent me the info, and so today I received my Helix Syn. What follows is a pretty detailed account of how I used it for the first time.
I want to mention here that I'd read all manner of things about the Aneros and how to use one before I got mine. I read the Wiki–the beginner guide and the advanced techniques page, mostly–I read the stuff posted on the Aneros website, I got some advice and answers from people in the Aneros website's chat. So I knew ahead of time that what I was going for was a relaxing, worry-free environment where I could, essentially, meditate while aroused with a thing in my butt.
So I grabbed my laptop and some headphones, a drink, and the conspicuously generic box that UPS brought, and I headed for my room, and closed the door. Turned on the fan–it's a fantastic way to muffle any sound coming from my roommates down the hall. I laid a towel on the bed, put the headphones aside, turned up the heater setting in the room, and unpackaged the Aneros and the lube which I had ordered with it. I stripped naked, and sat on the bed and farted around doing general internet/Reddit stuff. Chillin'. Relaxing.
I popped up a new browser window–don't want to see any tabs open that might make me remember some kind of horrible adult life thing–and found a section of /r/GoneWildAudio that looked like it held some promise, so that I could just click something already onscreen later. I also opened a couple explorer windows to a porn video or two. Arousal material. And then, I set my computer aside, got up, and took a shower.
I focused on bodily pleasure while there. I let myself feel good as the water struck me on the shoulder, chest, other shoulder, back, shoulder, back to the chest, etc–and I did have to 'let' myself do it; there's a certain functional pretense of propriety and dignity with these things usually, and it was important to put that aside and let go to really experience the sensation. I breathe deeply, and exhale with small sighs. I don't bother washing my hair–that's an adult-life concern, and if I need I can worry about it later. No worries now. I do make sure to touch my asshole a little bit, both to give it a little wash and to get myself refamiliarized a little bit with what it feels like down there–I've never done anything sexual with my ass before, so I figure it's to my benefit to make everything as familiar as possible.
I turn the water off and open the curtain perhaps a little too far too fast; the room heater does not work instantly. Still, it's not icy; just cold enough to give me good incentive to dry off fairly quickly. The towel feels really good against my skin, which still remembered the pleasantness of the hot water. I dry off even for a while after my skin is no longer really wet, just because the sensation is pretty nice. Because I simply want to.
I hang the towel up and pick up the Aneros and lube. I wash the former with hand soap (probably not the best choice, but I don't have the untreated stuff, and I rinse thoroughly in the hopes that this will get any bonus 'moisturizers' and 'scent' substances off the tool). I go back to my bed, adjust the towel for position so I can lay on it and just face my computer, and I lay down on my side.
I open the tube of lube (removing the seal before its first use), and squeeze some onto my hand–water-based lube flows a little more easily and freely than I expected, I have to reorient my hand so it doesn't flow off it and onto the bed–and lube up the toy. I have no idea how much lube I should put on the thing, but everything I've read about ass play says something along the lines of "if it seems like it's just enough, add more. If it seems completely excessive, that's the right amount." So I coat the thing and make sure there are no dry spots, and then I squeeze another dose onto my hand and rub it onto the toy as best as it will stick. The rest goes to my rectum, and that gets a second hit too.
In we go. I reach around my hips, toy in hand. The Helix Syn presses against my backdoor, which opens just enough for me to be quite sure it's beginning to intrude. Just the tip, as it were. I try to relax, but that's fairly difficult with the sensations of pressure going on. I press a little harder, and slowly more and more goes in–and suddenly it gets past a critical point and my ass sucks the thing the rest of the way in until it's comfortably resting where it was designed to. The sensation is weird; it's akin to the feeling on your arm when you sit in a chair with unpadded armrests. Pressure, as though against a corner, but not a sharp or honestly painful one, though it's clear it could become painful if force were applied. I take a moment to observe the feeling. I flex my PC muscle and anal sphincter, very softly. Doesn't seem to do anything. That's fine, it's only my first 60 seconds with the thing.
I bring up one of the GoneWildAudio bits, but it doesn't really do much of anything for me. I bring up one of the porn videos and fast forward to the 'good part,' and let it play.
Being on my side is somewhat problematic; my top leg is further forward than my bottom, which angles my hips in a way that brings my penis into some small contact with the bed. It's not a problem for now but it readily could be, so I shift to laying on my back, knees up. I adjust the towel and pillows so I'm not posted up against the headboard.
I look over at the porn. It's a good enough porn, but her sucking his dick brings me to the realization that I don't need that paradigm floating around in this brainspace. I kill the video, and close my laptop. Wasn't really doing much for me anyway.
The light in the room, on the nightstand by the bed, is starting to be bothersome behind my closed eyes. I turn the dimmer all the way down, and move the computer such that its power/battery/etc indicator lights don't scream into my eyes.
I'm still not really feeling much from the Aneros. I check the position of the P-tab. I find that I can't really feel it where it is, and I also find that I have no idea where it ought to be. I put it out of my mind. I flex my PC muscle and sphincter–gently–in a sequence, the way you sequentially tap your fingers one after the other against a desk; this was a technique mentioned in the Advanced section of the wiki. Doesn't really do anything for me. That's fine, I'm still a beginner at this stuff. I'll work on it later, maybe. Get to know that region a little better.
I remember that I can touch other areas on my body. A lot of people have said that their nipples have very high yield; I brush my hands up my torso to them, and start to massage. The texture is nice, and I find I'm enjoying myself, but not due to the sensation in my nipples as much as the sensation in my fingers; the pleasure in this is very similar to the pleasure I get from touching my girlfriend's nipples. Nothing wrong with that–I spend a little time here.
While this is going on I remember that I've told my girlfriend that she shouldn't feel like she's sequestered out of the room while I'm doing my thing; if she needs to go to the bathroom–our room is the Master bedroom with a bathroom attached–she should feel free to come in, maybe observe a little bit, but not to spend a whole lot of time there just to make sure I don't get distracted or get gun-shy. Since we do have roommates, it would be inopportune if she were to open the door to enter the room and permit the roommates to see me naked on the bed, wide open. I pull the blankets over myself, pulling them well enough that there's space between the sheets and my dick so that it doesn't interfere with the experience. I return my hands to my chest, and expand my motions to my torso in general. I am a hairy dude, so the sensations are plentiful. I'm starting to enjoy it, much in the same way I enjoyed the towel.
My dick wants attention. Its demands are forgotten seconds later.
I continue to rub myself. I expand my touch to my legs, hips, shoulders. I inhale deeply, and stretch, as though stretching my back after waking up. Most of the way through this motion it strikes me that I might interpret that as sexual subclimax if my girlfriend did it. Did I just have one of those? I can't be sure. I don't care enough to consider it for more than a couple seconds. Back to the rubbing.
I realize that I didn't check the clock before I started. In the event that nothing really happens, how long should I wait before calling it a wash? I give so little of a shit about the answer to this question that I don't bother to simply open my eyes and look at the clock at the side of my bed.
Something's definitely building. But I still don't really feel anything from the Aneros, beside the rectal "I can't close all the way because there's something in the way =/ " feeling. Is the Aneros responsible for what's developing, or am I essentially jacking off with my brain? Philosophers will debate this for centuries.
The rubbing continues. I move and stretch and gasp. I sound like an orgasm. I move like an orgasm. But the feelings are not nearly as distinct as I'm accustomed to from an orgasm. Notably, there's no observable intensity. There's no anatomical or spatial area where the good feelings are going, processing, feeling. It's like when you're smiling and you don't realize it until someone points it out, except I'm coming and I don't really feel like I'm coming. All the same, it's a hell of a ride, and an interesting thing to sort of watch as it happens to me. I grab my shoulders and pull forward, and I come. I grasp my knees and pull them towards my head, and I come. I writhe and twist between the sheets and I come. I briefly remove the blankets from on top of me, as they have been brushing against my cock. I quickly decide that's dumb and not going to work–I was really enjoying the feelings of my skin against the blankets as I gyrated. It's not really sending the old familiar 'dick attention' signals to my brain anyway. It will not harm anything.
There's a small noise at the door. A change in pressure, or maybe a gentle touch. My girlfriend slowly, carefully opens the door, no doubt wanting to stealth her way in so as not to distract. In between gasping breaths, I manage to say hello, and that I'm apparently goddamn gifted, and that she should feel welcome to stay and watch. She goes to the attached bathroom, closes the door, does her business. I continue to ride the O-train. Later she emerges, I ask if she wants to stay and watch, I ask her to stay and watch. I come and I come. She seems nonplussed. I tell her she can leave if she wants, I don't mean to keep her here. I'll be out as soon as I'm done. I have no idea how I could know that I'm done. But when I find out, then I'll come out and find her. She leaves.
I buck my hips a little. Feels good. I rock my hips a little. Feels really good. I squeeze my various pelvic muscles. Nothing real interesting. Hm. Back to rocking my hips, then. I come.
I have no idea how many times I came. I have no idea how many of my thrashings and gaspings constitute orgasm. I wasn't trying to count anyway. Every time I have a really strong one, one that really grips me, I think that must be it, the big finale. And then I can't stop my hips from continuing to twist and pivot and swirl. Guess we're not done yet. And then, utterly without warning, I'm done. I have no idea how I know. There was no punctuating event. There was no poignant release. I'm just done, and that's that. I lay on the bed and breathe heavy breaths.
I lay there for minutes. Ten, fifteen? I can't bring myself to remove the Aneros, I know I would miss it like a close friend. I open the computer, check on the Aneros site chat. Briefly celebrate what I just experienced. I am so profoundly calm. Calm, and blissful. My skin hums. This must be what an afterglow is like. I close my eyes and lay back, but for once I have no desire to sleep. My hips shift, and there's a sensation. I briefly and seriously consider resuming my travails, but decide against it. No reason for excess my first time at bat.
Time passes, and I feel it's time. I reach for the handle, and tug. The Aneros comes out perfectly amicably for most of its length, and again I run into the problem of trying to figure out how to relax against pressure. A slightly harder pull and the Aneros is free. There's a little crud on it, but just a little. I wipe my ass with the towel, it comes back clean. Neat.
I get up. My movements are slow, deliberate. Not clumsy, not careless, but slow. I am a giant in the plains.
I clean off the toy again, using the same soap, rinsing with the same thoroughness. I place it back in its packaging. I wipe my ass, in case of excess lube–the paper slides a little, but there's little poo residue. That'll do. I put on my clothes, slowly.
I go out to the main room of my apartment, and I ask for a hug from my girlfriend. We embrace. I tell her, "I understand so many things now."
I ride the calm high for hours.
That is my first experience with the Helix Syn Aneros. I am a believer.