HerSex

In her 20s Maya escaped an abusive engagement, and ran as far away from traditional relationships as she could.  Over the years in non-monogamous relationships she learned a lot about herself and her own boundaries, and healed.  She was also able to satisfy her high sex drive and desire for sexual novelty and exploration through these non-traditional relationships.  Now, 15 years later, Maya has come full circle and is now looking for a committed, monogamous relationship and family.  She tells her story and gives advice to women wanting to satisfy their own curiosity.

Ellaraisa is a 70something year-young woman, who was a professional ballerina, and still works in high-level dance and choreography.  She talks about physical and emotional intimacy in this season of her life- she is single but wants to be in a committed relationship. She will talk about a skin condition on her vulva called lichen sclerosis, which makes sexual penetration difficult, as well as the therapy and treatment for this autoimmune disease.  She talks about her history of sexual, physical, and emotional trauma, and how she recovers from this trauma and the deep joy she takes in life.  She tells humorous dating stories, the physical and emotional challenges of dating in this season of her life, and tells us about the generational gap between her age group and younger women, and how that manifests in love and love-making.  She is the embodiment of fireworks!

Endometriosis is a painful condition that affects more than 1 in 10 women and unknown numbers of transgender and gender diverse people.  It can be challenging to receive timely diagnosis, and people can often go years without effective treatment.  One of the hallmark symptoms of endometriosis, although not always present, is painful sex.  Dr. Bridge-Cook discusses endometriosis in general, as well as the specifics of endo-related sexual pain.  

For more information on endometriosis, The Endometriosis Network Canada is an trustworthy resource and a group where Dr. Bridge-Cook volunteers her time: https://www.facebook.com/TheEndoNetwork, or www.endometriosisnetwork.com

Resources Dr. Bridge-Cook mentions in her interview:  the book Beating Endo, by Dr. Iris Orbuch;  Sex Pain and Endometriosis website https://endopain.endometriosis.org

Another resource:  https://www.facebook.com/groups/NancysNookEndoEd

After 30 years of pain with deep penetration during sex, Annie finally found a solution.  She tells us about the long journey it took to get there, including scores of physicians, multiple surgeries, diagnoses including endometriosis, fibroids, and ovarian cysts, the challenges it presented in her relationship, and how she had lost hope.  Fortunately, she never gave up.  

Annie returns for part 2, describing how a stuck tampon lead them to find her daughter's septate hymen, and the surgical procedure that resulted.  Annie talks about the physical experience, as well as her parenting experience.

50 year old Annie discusses the labiaplasty she had age 17:  what it was like to discover that her vulva was different, how it affected her, why she chose to have a labiaplasty at a young age, and her thoughts since then.  This is part 1 of a 3 part interview.