March - A focus on sex positivity

The therapists we've featured here are sex positive and kink aware.

Let's talk about sex positivity

At TherapyDen, our attitude towards human sexuality regards all consensual sexual activities as fundamentally healthy and pleasurable. We don't judge or shame sexual outsiders.

Community leaders voice out

Sex positivity is so much more that being an advocate for people having sex, a definition a lot of people attribute to the term. Sex positivity to me means that a person has informed consent, education, emotional support, emotional/mental capacity and full agency in making decisions about their body, including the choice not to have sex. A part of being sex positive that calls us beyond the counseling room is that as counselors, we have an ethical responsibility to motivate and bring about change in the greater society around culture and oppression. One example for this is the destigmatization of things such as STI status. Many people think that if someone has something like genital herpes, they don’t deserve to have sex with other people because of the risk of infection. However, to be truly sex positive, we must not give in to the media hysteria around those that have STIs because the fact is, their rates of transmission vary based on the stages of herpes and many people do safely have sex with STI-positive sex. Relatedly, another aspect of sex positivity that is important is that sex education that is provided must always be empirically face yet medically accurate. Lastly, like with all types of therapy, sex positivity must be accompanied with a heavy dose of non-judgment and unconditional positive regard. We must confront our own attitudes about sex, relationships, consent and morality around these issues an order for us to decrease our biased so don’t express judgment in ways that are even subconscious for not apparent to ourselves.

Caitlin Bovard, Sex Therapist

 

Being 'sex positive' means having a broader understanding of the connections between our experiences as sexual beings and our well-being and relationships with ourselves and others. And in order to make that understanding useful to clients, also required is a deep clarity and comfort with our own sexuality. It helps to have enough experienced knowledge that feeling "shocked" is not on the table -- in fact, because of the many dominant cultures' pressures toward shame, a sex positive therapist must convey a sense of reassuring safety that empowers clients to not only share and process what they need to but to also see themselves in a different light. In Houston, a major hub for sex trafficking, the need for sex positive professionals takes on a nuanced light. A fine balancing acts is required of therapists working with clientele who may be engaged in sexual social circles that are or have been beyond their control. The "positivity" that is required is not specifically or necessarily to convey 'approval' or even 'acceptance' in some clients' situations. Narrative therapy techniques as proposed by Michael White and others can provide rich resources for clients regarding sexuality and sex.

Tracy Morris, Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist

Therapists that are sex positive and kink friendly