SSR: Definition, Myth of Risk-Free Sex, and Comparison with Bareback and Cum Play

SSR (Safer Sex) : Definition and Practices

Acronym for « Safer Sex ». So, how to enjoy Safer Sex plans? You guessed it, by wearing a condom! This is the opposite of a bareback plan, which inherently carries risks. One can also say that a person is SSR to indicate that they wear a condom and limit risk-taking (oral sex also carries risks of disease transmission, see our health section).

The Myth of “Risk-Free Sex” and the Reality of Bareback

STOP: as some of our internet users have pointed out, “Risk-Free Sex” is a myth, since even wearing a condom carries a risk: it can indeed break. To be truly SSR, one would have to be abstinent, which in this case is no longer sex unless one only masturbates… Solo masturbation would therefore be the only truly SSR practice.

SSR vs. Bareback and Cum Play: A Question of Vocabulary

The term ssr has a somewhat negative connotation in the bareback community: it was supposedly invented by anti-barebacker associations who could no longer stand the words bareback or unsafe. However, it is sometimes found, but not necessarily in the context of cum play. « Are you SSR? » asks the barebacker… « I am what? » his interlocutor gently replies on the chat. « Well, do you have bareback sex? Do you like cum? ». Then, his interlocutor will have understood! SSR is found in Actup publications and other preventive texts, but less and less in ads or chats.

Why the Term SSR is Disappearing in Favor of Bareback?

Moreover, why say that someone is ssr? We would never ask « are you bareback », because it is a practice, not something one is… This term is therefore proof that it was invented to identify a type of person and not a type of practice. It is disappearing, little by little, and we can only advise you to call a spade a spade: bareback is clear to everyone…