The ongoing pandemic has changed life as we know it, and with no end in sight, people are seeking answers from unconventional sources.

PsychicWorld reported in June that since the lockdown began, there were 669,000 Google searches for "psychic advice" and searches for "psychic predictions coronavirus" increased by 95% over a 90-day period.

The website surveyed the things people are seeking psychic help for during the pandemic, and they found that 80% were asking to see their future, 74% were seeking love advice, and 67% were seeking job advice.

However, this does not give an insight into how this differs from the experience of psychics before the pandemic.

Working over video chat and phone, VT interviewed two psychics, Daniela Birch and Justine Ayling, both of whom experienced the reported surge in business, and we asked them how this compared to psychic work before COVID-19.

Justine Ayling said she received so many requests she turned down work.

Meanwhile, Daniela Birch said that those who had previously been closed off to her work became less frightened of it.

She said: "People are way more open to my advice. While in the past, I have felt people judged me and feared my gifts."

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The two women noticed a difference in the type of requests they've received, with both noting a move towards mediumship - channeling communication between the dead and the living.

Birch said: "I am known as a relationship/soul mate specialist, but I would say the mediumship side has been stronger. My clients are wanting reassurance from their loved ones on the other side."

This was also the case for Ayling, who said: "I've seen a bit of an increase in people wanting to connect with spirit, partly for guidance but mainly for comfort.

"People realized that the cards were not going to tell them anything they didn't already know, lockdown/virus/social distancing wasn't going away anytime soon."

Clinical psychologist Dina Hassan said people are choosing mediumship because the pandemic has taught them that so many things are out of their hands.

She said: "Right now, it seems that every time you come to plan for the future, something bad happens, and this leaves you believing little in your ability to plan for what's to come."

The psychics said this has been a difficult time for them too, with Birch revealing that there have been days when her psychic channels have been blocked as she is "highly sensitive to energy."

She said: "Many psychics, including me, are empaths, and we feel the world's pain.

"I have had so many clients in pain, and fear of their future. Some have miscarried, lost loved ones, their business has dried up financially, and everyone is wanting reassurance from me."

One of the downsides of having so many people come to her for advice is that she has had days where she too has wanted comfort and has had to learn how to ask for it herself.

Ayling said that while she hasn't necessarily had trouble while working with clients, she has also tapped into the negative feelings of others.

She said: "I've had to put a lot of white light protection around myself during lockdown. I meditated, used healing crystals, and used mindfulness to keep the darkness of the time at bay."

An increased number of male clients have contacted Birch during the pandemic, which is an interesting shift from Pew Research Center's finding that women are typically twice as likely to visit psychics.

She said: "I am receiving a lot more men lately who want advice I do also offer intuitive mentoring and working on business coaching and not only one-off readings and guidance."

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Ayling said that one of the reasons people have sought out mediumship is because they have lost loved ones of the virus and wanted confirmation that they were still around.

"They also wanted the chance to say their goodbyes," she said.

Hassan said that seeking out psychics is a way of supplementing a need with hard evidence - evidence which, unfortunately, does not exist during this time.

She said: "It will be someone who really got hit hard by COVID. Who is in learned helpless mode, and that can be anyone because the isolation and distancing is affecting everyone, even therapists."

If you want to seek out psychic advice, Birch and Ayling advise consulting psychics with good reputations and taking recommendations where possible.

Birch said: "See what they specialize in. Really be crystal clear as to what you want support with."

Ayling added: "Have a completely open mind and be clear at the start what you are looking for."

But while psychics may comfort some during the pandemic, Hassan said that a good alternative is mindfulness.

"It's not a good thing to be stuck in the future or the past," she said. "Being mindful is about being aware of the here and now and celebrating your small successes, which, ultimately, could help you feel better about the future."

The adult pornographic website Pornhub is allegedly offering free access to all countries on lockdown during the coronavirus pandemic.

According to the website's recently-publicized insights, daily traffic has steadily increased from Italian users from March 9, and has been up by 14% as of March 11th as the country has gone into lockdown. Not only that, but worldwide traffic has spiked by 11.7% as of March 17th.

This time-lapse footage showing the reduction of pollution in Italy proves how many people have opted to stay in: 

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As a result, the website issued a statement on its official Twitter account, which read: "Pornhub is donating its March proceeds from Modelhub to support Italy during this unfortunate time (model earnings will remain untouched). Italy will also have free access to Pornhub Premium throughout the month. Forza Italia, we love you!"

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The pornographic website later issued a similar offer to French users, writing in another Twitter statement that: "In light of expanding quarantines, we are extending Free Pornhub Premium for the month to our friends in France! Pornhub will also donate this month's sales from Modelhub (model earnings will remain untouched). Courage France!"

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The national lockdowns occurred after the World Health Organisation has declared COVID-19 a pandemic, prompting many people around the world to begin self-isolating to avoid putting a strain on hospitals.

In a statement, WHO wrote that they had been: "Assessing this outbreak around the clock, and we are deeply concerned both by the alarming levels of spread and severity, and by the alarming levels of inaction. We have therefore made the assessment that COVID-19 can be characterized as a pandemic."

At the time of writing, there have now been 247,400 confirmed cases of COVID-19 across 114 countries worldwide, and a total of 10,067 deaths, according to John Hopkins University.

Like everything else; no sexual encounter is borne equal. You can have great sex, terrible sex, mind-blowing sex and then boring sex, all with the same person, in the space of a week. Though this seems counter-intuitive, it's really not that surprising once you realise that there are many factors which can influence the quality of your romp.

While we all know that the number of alcoholic beverages you've consumed prior to the fact, as well as something like what you chose to eat for dinner, can affect you and your partner's enjoyment - a recent study has established an altogether more rudimentary factor in the quality of your love-making.

It is reported that one in three American adults do not get enough sleep. Sexual issues are also common, with as many as 45 per cent of women and 31 per cent of men being actively concerned about the state of their sex lives. Now, while these may seem to be distinct concerns - unrelated apart from the fact that they both take place in the bedroom - sex educator and researcher, Laurie Mintz, has claimed to the contrary.

Mintz, who wrote A Tired Woman’s Guide to Passionate Sex did so to help the alleged "countless women" who say that they are too exhausted to be interested in sex. She states that women are disproportionately affected by both sleep problems and by low sexual desire, claiming that the relationship between the two is "indisputable". Certainly, women are not only more likely than men to have sleep problems, but the most common sexual complaint that women bring to sex therapists is, indeed, low desire.

"Strikingly, being too tired for sex is the top reason that women give for their loss of desire," Mintz added.

According to a study referenced by Mintz, getting a good night's sleep can increase desire. The research found that the longer a woman slept, the more interested they were in having sex - just one extra hour of sleep led to a 14 per cent increase in the chances of a sexual encounter the next day. The same study also alleged that sleep was associated with greater genital arousal.

While this particular investigation was conducted with college-aged women, these concerns only become more prevalent in older women, in particular, those going through menopause. A follow-up investigation discovered that among menopausal women, sleep problems were directly linked to a decreased appetite for sexual activity.

And it doesn't just end there. "Interrelated sleep and sexual issues are also prevalent among mothers," Mintz continued. "Mothers of new babies are the least likely to get a good night’s sleep, mostly because they are caring for their baby during the night. However, ongoing sleep and sexual issues for mothers are often caused by having too much to do and the associated stress. Women, who are married with school-age children and working full time, are the most likely to report insomnia. Still, part-time working moms and moms who don’t work outside the home report problems with sleep as well."

Though lack of sleep and insomnia appear to affect women's sexual functioning more than men's, it's apparent that they can still suffer from issues in these areas. Research found that, among young healthy men, a loss of sleep culminated in decreased levels of testosterone - the hormone which is responsible for much of our sex drive. As Mintz corroborates, "Clearly, among men, lack of sleep results in diminished sexual functioning."

So, there you have it - you better rest up folks - lest you want your sex drive to suffer.

New Yorkers have been urged to make sex "a little" kinky by wearing facemasks in a bid to halt the spread of the coronavirus.

This comes as part of updated guidelines from the New York City Health Department, which have been designed to help people be intimate and safe during the pandemic.

Face masks are advised as a physical barrier during sex because the coronavirus can be spread through saliva and breathing, and the agency has made a point of reminding people that "you are your safest sex partner".

Kelly Hogan Painter took a shopping trip in a Buzz Lightyear helmet to protect herself from the virus: 

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"Be creative with sexual positions and physical barriers, like walls, that allow sexual contact while preventing close face to face contact," the guidelines say.

The guidelines also promote the benefits of couples masturbating together since it can be done while social distancing, but they add that people "will and should have sex".

Scientists have been analyzing the effect sex has on the transmissibility of the disease by examining traces of Covid-19 in men's semen.

It is now being advised that if a person has sex with someone outside their household, they should select a trusted partner so that they can fully discuss the risks.

The guidelines appear to ban sex between two or more people because "large gatherings of any type are not safe during Covid-19".

As it stands, people should avoid large groups of people and get creative if they are interested in group play by engaging in events like these Zoom sex parties discussed by Rolling Stone.

Similar guidelines have been issued elsewhere in the US, with Austin, Texas advising people to "stay physically distant from your honey" before listing creative suggestions for social distancing.

Per the John Hopkins University Coronavirus Resource Center, at the time of writing, there have been 7,394,801 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus worldwide, and a global death toll of 417,109.

A sex expert has explained how a new trend has seen a sudden surge in interest... and it's definitely pretty unexpected.

Sex is something that a lot of people are private about, and that's completely understandable.

However, for others, there are certain trends that might be of interest and that might seem quite bizarre to others.

But hey, whatever you do in your own time is entirely up to you.

A sex and relationship expert recently delved into five years of Google search data, analyzing 160 million queries to uncover how sexual preferences and interests are evolving.

While some trends are waning, others are gaining traction.

For instance, searches for "dogging" (engaging in sex in public places) and "cottaging" (having sex in public bathrooms) have plummeted, with the latter experiencing a staggering 70% decline.

But as these once-popular activities fade, newer and more niche fetishes are on the rise.

One such fetish is vore, short for vorarephilia, which has seen a 26% increase in searches.

This term might be unfamiliar to many, but according to the National Library of Medicine, vore is "an infrequently presenting paraphilia, characterized by the erotic desire to consume or be consumed by another person or creature."

While cannibalism is illegal in most parts of the world, vore remains a fantasy rather than a real-world practice.

Rachel Thompson’s findings shed light on this burgeoning interest, and others in the field have weighed in on its implications.

Hope Flynn, head of content at the sexual wellness brand IPlaySafe, explained to Mail Online: "It's important to know that vore is only fantasy and doesn’t involve real harm or eating. There’s a distinction between those who like to consume (predators) and those who like to be consumed (prey)."

Flynn elaborated further, saying: "People with vore fantasies might express themselves through stories, artworks, role-playing, or online discussions and forums like Reddit."

Flynn speculated that the increased interest in vore could be partly attributed to the influence of shows like Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story and House of Hammer.

"They both condone literal cannibalistic love or elements of it," she said, referring to the darker, more taboo aspects of these productions.

Vore isn’t the only unconventional fetish capturing people’s imagination.

Adult entertainment platform P*rnhub revealed that fictional characters are another major area of interest.

DC Comics’ Harley Quinn, portrayed on screen by Margot Robbie and Lady Gaga, claimed the top spot on the list, surpassing fan-favorite franchises like Star Wars and Game of Thrones, which secured the second and third positions, respectively.

Other notable entries included the blue-skinned characters from the Avatar films at number four, followed by Harry Potter, Wonder Woman, and Disney’s The Incredibles.

Perhaps more surprising were appearances from children's franchises like Shrek, Power Rangers, and Spider-Man, all making it into the top 30 most searched movies and characters on the platform.

Featured image credit: Tom Merton/Getty