Sex is Yours

This week, Anne Marie Gunn welcomes her friend Parisa Shirazi Chavoya to the podcast to discuss various movement practices and their impact on sexual health, the cultural impact of body hair in Iran and the U.S., The Vagina Monologues by V Ensler, and both Parisa and Anne Marie offer reflections on their spiritual journeys over the last decade or so. For folks sensitive to religious trauma, purity culture, and homophobia please listen with care.Parisa Shirazi Chavoya is a certified yoga, reiki energy healing, and sound therapy guide. She founded Parisa Yoga Shala in 2022 with the dream of supporting her community with their wellness and healing journey through accessible & trauma-informed embodiment practices.Parisa loves using the power of her voice, healing vibrations, and the sacred practices of yoga and reiki to guide people into deep meditative states to support nervous system regulation.She offers 1:1, couples, small group, and workplace wellness offerings throughout the Greater Milwaukee Area. You can learn more about her work at parisayogashala.com and on her Instagram @parisayogashala.

Audio Disclaimer from Anne Marie: I am still learning how to record and edit with two live microphones and unfortunately in the transfer and editing process, I deleted the original file with the better audio quality. The episode you'll hear is a result of this mistake (only my microphone became the driving audio of the playback track). I apologize for the unevenness in the quality, but sincerely hope you stick around for the content! It was an incredible conversation and I'm glad I can still share it in some capacity.Episode Summary: This week, Anne Marie Gunn welcomes her former high school history teacher, Jane Thompson, as a guest to talk about the American Sexual Revolution of the 1960's and 1970's. The conversation begins with how World War II, Margaret Sanger/the (white) women's suffrage movement and movement towards family limitations, and the 1950's all led to an American Sexual Revolution. Jane and Anne Marie discuss the influence of culture on politics and vice versa (ie. through language about gender and sex changing over time). Their conversation highlights key figures in the Sexual Revolution including researcher Alfred Kinsey and author Betty Friedan (The Feminine Mystique). Other topics covered include: the Civil Rights Act of 1965, Roe v. Wade (1972) and its overturn (2022), Vietnam War protests, free love/drug culture of the hippie movement, Title IX and its impact on higher education, women's sports & equal pay, and girls' agency over their bodies, the Equal Rights Amendment not being signed, the LGBTQ+ movement, the AIDs crisis, the disability rights movement, the 80's mirroring the 50's, and the development of technology and the internet impacting American music and sex. Finally, Jane and Anne Marie discuss how the paradox of American individualism and idealism of unification impacts societal progress.

In this episode, host Anne Marie Gunn highlights the book “Pleasure Activism” by adrienne maree brown and shares her own lineage of who taught her how to feel good. “Hot & Heavy Homework” Prompt from “Pleasure Activism”:“Write up your pleasure activism lineage! Who awakened your senses? Who politicized your experiences of body, identity, sensation, feeling good? If they are still living, have you thanked them properly? If yes, good, do it again. If not, reach out. If they are ancestors, honor them with a pleasure altar covered in sticky fruit, sweet smalls, sacred water, and thick earth, centered around fire. Gratitude is part of pleasure too.” Additional sources mentioned/shared:PLEASURE Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster SENSUAL Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster The Tool Shed “Wild Geese” by Mary Oliver“Holy Hurt” by Hillary McBride“The Vagina Monologues” by V Ensler“Your Body is Not an Apology” by Sonya Renee Taylor“Sister Outsider” by Audre Lorde, specifically the essay “Uses of the Erotic”Other authors: Taylor Jenkins Reid and Patti Smith, Haley Jakobson, Jenny Slate, Cheryl StrayedVisual artists: Frida Kahlo, Hilma af Klint, Martha Jungwirth, Etel Adnan Musical artists: Bon Iver, Dijon, Rihanna, Janelle Monae, Chappell RoanQueer Sex Therapy on Instagram (Casey Tanner)

With a focus on how sex is for all bodies, Sex is Yours host, Anne Marie Gunn, explores media representation of sex plots for people with disabilities, a sex education resource guide for people with disabilities, the documentary Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution, and shares an expounded statement by author and educator, Denise Sherer Jacobson. You can also read Denise's statement provided for this episode on the Sex is Yours Website. https://deniseshererjacobson.com/ Denise's Instagram account: @ deniseshererjacobsonBio from her website: Author and educator Denise Sherer Jacobson, M.A., is passionate about  “Weaving the Disability Experience into the Tapestry of Living.” She has worked as an activist, counselor, administrator, and oral historian in the Independent Living Movement for over 50 years, all the while keeping her sense of humor.Additional Sources:Glee: Season 1 Episode 4, Season 3 Episode 5, & Season 3 Episode 10Love on the SpectrumSex Education: Season 3 Episode 4Blogpost: Further Exploring Disability and Sexuality in Netflix's Crip CampExile and Pride by Eli ClareOur Sexuality, Our Health: A Disabled Advocate's Guide to Relationships, Romance, Sexuality and Sexual Health made by Melissa Crisp-Cooper2020 Netflix documentary CRIP CAMP: A Disability Revolution, produced by Barack and Michelle Obama's company, Higher Ground.

It's a fact that men masturbate more than women. But where did this masturbation gap come from? How is it being perpetuated? What impact does it have on peoples' sex lives? This episode explores these questions and more.Sources:https://refreshtherapynyc.com/guilt-vs-shame-why-understanding-the-difference-matters-for-your-mental-health/ https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/insight-therapy/201009/the-masturbation-gap https://www.lelo.com/blog/the-masturbation-gap-what-women-can-learn-from-mens-masturbation-habits/ https://goaskalice.columbia.edu/answered-questions/masturbating-stats-are-there-gender-differences-and-why/ https://sexualbeing.org/blog/masturbating-while-trans-how-to-get-off-and-stay-gender-euphoric/ https://www.autostraddle.com/33-queer-women-and-non-binary-people-on-their-first-masturbation-experiences-436240/ https://blog.womanizer.com/equal-masturbation-day/ 

Content warnings: rape, sexual assaultThis episode gives the background of host Anne Marie Gunn and her personal reasons, as well as broader reasons, for starting this podcast. Some topics that are covered include: Christian messaging about sex, finding personal sexual ethic, coming out as bisexual, queer and trans rights, masturbation, the ways patriarchy is preventing people from having good sex, and how talking about sex can result in people having better sex. Anne Marie touches on her decision to stop her original launch of the series in 2022 and why she has ultimately brought it back today.

Recorded in Denver, Colorado, this week's episode is part two of a conversation between host, Anne Marie Gunn, and one of her best friends Kate Morris. Kate begins by sharing about a film, "Yes God Yes," directed and written by Karen Maine, an alumna of Kate's high school.  Other topics covered in this episode include: Kate's journey with her sexuality and the label "lesbian"The importance of media representation for the queer community (broader than gay, white, cis-men)How Kate and Anne Marie's relationships with women have been fetishizedKate's insight on the benefits of masturbation

Recorded in Denver, Colorado, this week's episode features a conversation between host, Anne Marie Gunn, and one of her best friends, Kate Morris. Kate shares about her experience with sex and sexuality, the influence (or lack thereof) of Catholic school/family/friends, tidbits from a human sexuality class she is currently taking, and the importance of sex conversations in the social work field. This is part one of two of this interview.

What turns you on? Seeing your partner in lingerie, hearing yourself moan, smelling a candle you use to set the mood, or something else? In this episode, Anne Marie Gunn talks about the various arousal types categorized by relationship and sex therapist Petra Zebroff, PhD. They are: the sensualist, the behaviorist, the intimate, the attractor and the equalist. Take this arousal type test to understand your arousal type(s) and learn more about what turns you on. Additional sources:https://www.wellandgood.com/how-to-get-aroused/ https://www.thecandidly.com/2019/there-are-6-arousal-types-which-is-yours 

This week, Anne Marie is joined by one of her best friends, Kennedy Latham to talk about the reasons why Kennedy left Christianity, more specifically Catholicism, including: the pro-life movement, homophobia, shame around masturbation, and emotional manipulation. This episode handles sensitive topics surrounding religious trauma so please check-in with yourself before listening.

This week, Anne Marie takes a deeper dive into the reasons why she left Christianity including: purity culture, systemic racism, systemic discrimination of the LGBTQ+ community, and emotional manipulation. This episode handles sensitive topics surrounding religious trauma so please check-in with yourself before listening.

It's a fact that men masturbate more than women. But where did this masturbation gap come from? How is it being perpetuated? What impact does it have on peoples' sex lives? This episode explores these questions and more.Sources:https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/insight-therapy/201009/the-masturbation-gap https://www.lelo.com/blog/the-masturbation-gap-what-women-can-learn-from-mens-masturbation-habits/ https://goaskalice.columbia.edu/answered-questions/masturbating-stats-are-there-gender-differences-and-why/ https://sexualbeing.org/blog/masturbating-while-trans-how-to-get-off-and-stay-gender-euphoric/ https://www.autostraddle.com/33-queer-women-and-non-binary-people-on-their-first-masturbation-experiences-436240/ https://blog.womanizer.com/equal-masturbation-day/

Listen in to hear a brief history of vibrators, including; why they were invented (it's probably not what you think), how media impacted their popularity and absence in American culture, and who uses them today and why.Sources used:https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/all-about-sex/201303/hysteria-and-the-strange-history-vibratorshttps://www.statista.com/forecasts/743584/sex-toy-ownership-of-female-consumers-in-the-us https://www.statista.com/forecasts/744538/sex-toy-ownership-of-female-consumers-in-the-us-by-type#:~:text=Nearly%2080%25%20of%20female%20U.S.,sex%20toys%2C%20as%20of%202015. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20561168/ https://utpjournals.press/doi/full/10.3138/cjhs.2017-0016 https://www.o.school/article/age-of-people-buying-sex-toys https://www.vice.com/en/article/nz8paz/the-rise-of-sex-toys-on-tvhttps://bedbible.com/how-many-people-use-vibrators/ 

With the overturning of Roe v. Wade by the U.S. Supreme Court, this episode explores the cultural and systemic impact of disembodiment. More specifically: how patriarchy, white supremacy, capitalism and Christianity have and are disconnecting the American people from their bodies, in the context of abortion, and at large.Follow us on Instagram: @/sexisyoursVisit our website: sexisyours.com TikTok Accounts to Follow:@/sunnydaejones@/kinareed@/mplsadonia@/desireebstephens@/morganmatrix@/myopinions_tm@/itsmatu.gwendolyn@/gigistherapyworld@/thomas_thevillian_bishop

This episode gives the background of the host Anne Marie Gunn and her personal reasons, as well as broader reasons, for starting this podcast. Topics the host covers include: Christian messaging about sex, finding a personal sexual ethic, coming out as bisexual, masturbation, the ways patriarchy is preventing people from having good sex, and how talking about sex can result in people having better sex.