Dr. Carlton Thomas found himself with more time on his hands than he’d had in years during the pandemic. In addition to seeing his private practice as a gastroenterologist slow down drastically, he and his husband watched as their 16-year-old children retreated to their rooms, leaving them alone together with Netflix. And, as it happens, a new TikTok account.
“I turned it on at eight one night, and I looked up and it was midnight,” Thomas says, laughing. “I had been completely enthralled for four hours.”
He stayed enthralled every night, finally succumbing to the urge to join in. And what better niche to fill as a gay GI doctor than talking about butt stuff?
“I take being a gay doctor very very seriously,” he says “There’s such a lack of visible representation in our community, and there’s such a gap in healthcare for gay men in this country. I never got gay sex education in high school or college, but I’m a gay man who’s almost 50 years old and I am an expert in the GI tract. I think I have what it takes!”
On a whim, Thomas created an anal sex prep TikTok—being careful to walk all the fine lines required by Big Apps, like calling anal sex “The Event.”
“So I talked about how to clean out, the importance of lubrication, and then this trick I have as a doctor on how to make your hole relax,” he recalls. “If you stick your finger in and press to the side, it starts relaxing open.”
Within two days, he had 55,000 followers—and one comment complaining that TikTok is “a dancing app for kids!” but he kept right on going.
His TikTok bio calls him “The CEO of Back Door Stuff,” but that’s only half in jest. Dr. Thomas has made a name for himself by talking about a subject that people are either consumed with curiosity over or in dire need of advice about. Surprisingly, his biggest audience is straight women.
“I know anal sex is for everyone, but I didn’t know it would be more interesting for women than men in this format,” he says. “So I realized how important it is to talk about anal sex not just for gay people but for everyone.”
“Everyone” quickly became his guiding principle, as he segued from anal sex to more generalized sexual healthcare. Dr. Thomas’ videos cover everything from harm reduction to how people can find gay and gay-friendly medical providers. Not to mention the free consults he has been able to provide virtually to people in countries where homosexuality is illegal.
Through it all, he advocates exudes humor and good cheer, helping take the fear out of what can be a scary subject. He’s a regular guest on a slew of podcasts, and is now starting to make personal appearances, including one at Austin’s Sir Rat Leather June 20. More importantly, he wants to be an advocate for everyone’s good sexual health, starting with making sure they’re seeing physicians who understand their singular risks.
But to end with the end, Dr. Thomas offers his most basic tips on anal sex for those who have it and those who want to. “It doesn’t have to be an unpleasant experience and it doesn’t have to hurt! There’s ways to make it so much better, especially on the bottom’s side of things. If it feels like he’s hitting a wall, he probably is! Change positions. Use lots of lubrication.”
And of course, there is The Butt Clock, “where you stick your finger in and and press laterally,” he says. “People all around the world have messaged me and said, ‘That tip has changed my life completely!'”
