I am thoroughly enjoying the process of interviewing women for my first book on women's experiences and meaning around sex and sexuality. One of the questions I ask is whether women enjoy pornography and the reasons why or why not. If you're a woman, how do you feel about this? Can you articulate what you think about pornography or erotica? If you're a man who enjoys pornography, do you know the various perspectives that women have on this?

Pornography is a controversial topic for many women which elicits strong reactions – sometimes positive and sometimes negative. The responses from women run the gamut from those who find mainstream pornography very arousing and love using it to kick start an evening with their partner, to the other end of the spectrum with interviewees who find the portrayal of women and intimacy offensive and degrading. And for some of the women I interviewed, they experience an ambiguous relationship with pornography that they find troubling. They experience a visceral arousal when watching some pornography, but at the same time find it offensive, intellectually and/or morally.

I love that I get to dig at these topics that we don't often discuss with a mix of intellectualism and emotions. If this topic interests you, and you live in the San Diego area, come on out Monday night (May 19) at 7pm to discuss pornography and erotica at the monthly Coed Coffee Chat.

Jennifer Gunsaullus, Ph.D.

Relationship & Intimacy Doctor
www.drjennsden.com

Raw. Untamed. Animalistic. Wild.
Is this your experience of sex?
Or does this describe it more?
Refined. Controlled. Thoughtful. Self-conscious.

Neither is right or wrong.

I've talked with a number of women who are in long-term relationships, love their partners deeply, and are generally self-expressed and enjoying of their sexual play and connection. However, the last frontier, so to speak, is to allow themselves to be completely uninhibited in a sexual situation...to be wild, totally in the moment, and completely vulnerable. This vulnerability is a window to our soul and our essence. If we keep that last bit protected and safe and unexpressed, then we cannot be judged for our authenticity and rejected for our truth.

But the women who have expressed this to me, have also expressed their desire to be able to completely trust and let go. That is the ultimate connection with another human, and the ultimate revelation of self. This is terrifying for many, but therefore also potentially the most healing and liberating experience.

Jennifer Gunsaullus, Ph.D.

Relationship & Intimacy Doctor
Female Sexual Empowerment in San Diego!
www.drjennsden.com

I wrote last week about how masturbation is a taboo topic. I think that openly discussing menstruation (in a positive way) is also taboo in our society. Most of what we learn about our menstrual cycle, both overtly and subtly, is ridden with dirtiness, shame, and silence. One of the gems for me of working on my first book right now, and interviewing women about a variety of experiences and meanings related to sex and sexuality, is that many of these women have made a shift towards embracing their cycle as a gift of wisdom.

From a medical angle, a recent research study found that menstrual blood could be a valuable source of stem cells. The article stated:

Experiments in lab dishes showed that under the right conditions, the menstrual stem cells could turn into more different tissue types — including bone, blood vessel, fat, brain, lung, liver, pancreas and heart — than other adult stem cells. The new stem cells also grow readily and rapidly, which is an important advantage....These menstrual stem cells could offer several advantages. They come from a source that's easy to obtain from women, they could be used to treat patients without the fear of tissue rejection, and they avoid the ethical questions associated with embryonic stem cells.

Click HERE to read this article about scientists pursuing a new type of stem cell found in menstrual blood.

If you're interested in checking out a cool site that honors and celebrates women's cycles, go to Red Moon ~ Cycles of Women's Wisdom™.

Jennifer Gunsaullus, Ph.D.

Relationship & Intimacy Doctor - San Diego
www.drjennsden.com