Owning Your Sexual Self

Hey hey! Welcome back to the Owning You Sexual Self podcast! I’m so thrilled to welcome Amanda Dames, aka The Kink Consultant, on this week! Amanda is a sexologist, Somatica® Certified Sex and Relationship Coach, podcast host, and former NYC Dominatrix who brings such an open and approachable perspective to kink, desire, intimacy, and communication. Her work has reached more than 300,000 followers and landed her features in Cosmopolitan, HuffPost, Women’s Health, and more. She has an incredible way of taking topics that can feel intimidating or taboo and making them easier to explore with curiosity, confidence, and a whole lot less shame.

In this episode:

• What it can look like to explore your kinky side
• How shame can keep people from talking about their desires
• What kink actually means and how it shows up in everyday sexuality
• How to talk about boundaries, limits, and interests before exploring
• Why starting slowly is important when trying kink for the first time
• How trust, consent, and feedback shape kink experiences
• Where to learn kink skills and find community, classes, and other resources

Thank you so much for listening! Don't forget to share on your social media and tag me if you loved this episode!

Ready to take a different look at what may be keeping you stuck in love? Love Magnet is a free three day workshop with Christine Hassler and Stefanos Sifandos focused on breaking old patterns and creating space for the relationship you want. 

Join Love Magnet 

*If you decide to join through this affiliate link, Rachel may receive a small commission, which is always appreciated and helps support the work she shares with this community.*

Resources
Guide for couples with mismatched desire to have more open and honest conversations in a safe framework: https://www.amandadames.com/Speak-Your-Desires-with-Confidence-opt-in-1

BDSM Menu for couples who are curious to explore each other's kinks: https://www.amandadames.com/bdsmlist

Connect with Amanda!
Website:  AmandaDames.com
Instagram: @the_kinkconsultant
Facebook: thekinkconsultant
TikTok: @the_kinkconsultant
YouTube: @thekinkconsultant
Podcast: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-kink-consultant/id1766435920

Support the show

Connect with Rachel!
Instagram: @The_Rachel_Maine
Website: https://linktr.ee/WellnessSexpertise
YouTube: YouTube.com/@OwningYourSexualSelf
Facebook: Rachel Maine
Email: [email protected]

Hey and welcome back to the Owning Your Sexual Self podcast! I’ve been looking forward to this conversation with Stefanos Sifandos because he brings such a unique depth to the way he talks about relationships, emotional safety, and human connection. With 25 years of experience working with Olympians, world champions, CEOs, military operators, individuals, and couples, his work brings together behavioral science, trauma resolution, and personal transformation. I’ve followed Stefanos for quite some time, so having him here to talk about emotional safety, the patterns we carry into relationships, and what it takes to create deeper connection feels especially exciting.

In this episode: 

• What emotional safety can look like within a healthy intimate relationship
• How old survival patterns can show up during conflict
• The role trust, boundaries, repair, and personal space play in emotional safety
• How a lack of emotional safety can create distance in sexual intimacy
• Why moving through challenges together can strengthen connection
• How shame can interfere with authenticity and vulnerability
• Why couples may benefit from talking more openly about their deepest sexual desires

Thank you so much for listening! Don't forget to share on your social media and tag me if you loved this episode!

Ready to take a different look at what may be keeping you stuck in love? Love Magnet is a free three day workshop with Christine Hassler and Stefanos Sifandos focused on breaking old patterns and creating space for the relationship you want. 

Join Love Magnet 

*If you decide to join through this affiliate link, Rachel may receive a small commission, which is always appreciated and helps support the work she shares with this community.*

Connect with Sefanos!
Book: TunedinAndTurnedonBook.com
Website: StefanosSifandos.com
Socials @StefanosSifandos

Support the show

Connect with Rachel!
Instagram: @The_Rachel_Maine
Website: https://linktr.ee/WellnessSexpertise
YouTube: YouTube.com/@OwningYourSexualSelf
Facebook: Rachel Maine
Email: [email protected]

Hello hello! Welcome back to the Owning Your Sexual Self podcast! I am thrilled to welcome Sapphire Leela this week! Sapphire is a Psychosexual and Relationship Therapist, Intimacy Educator, and Certified Somatic Sexology Coach who helps people navigate sexual shame, desire differences, people pleasing, and recurring relationship patterns. She brings such a unique perspective to intimacy by blending somatic sexology with psychosexual and relationship therapy, and I cannot wait for you to hear everything she brings to this conversation!

In this episode:

• How somatic work can complement traditional talk therapy
• How sexual shame and relationship patterns show up in the body
• Why conflict can become a repeating loop between partners
• How to recognize and interrupt your relational reflexes
• The role vulnerability can play in moving through conflict
• How regulation can help create space for connection and intimacy
• Practical tools for regulating your nervous system

Thank you so much for listening! Don't forget to share on your social media and tag me if you loved this episode!

**This episode is sponsored by Foria. Visit ForiaWellness.com and use my exclusive code MAINE20 for 20% off your order!**

Connect with Sapphire Leela
Instagram: @intimacy.with.sapphire
Website: SapphireLeela.com

Support the show

Connect with Rachel!
Instagram: @The_Rachel_Maine
Website: https://linktr.ee/WellnessSexpertise
YouTube: YouTube.com/@OwningYourSexualSelf
Facebook: Rachel Maine
Email: [email protected]

Heeey! I'm back with a quick tip solo episode of the Owning Your Sexual Self podcast! If date nights keep getting pushed off, feel hard to plan, or always seem to fall on one person, this episode is for you! I’m sharing a simple tool called quad dating that gives you an easy way to make space for yourself, your partner, and your relationship each month. I’ll walk you through the four types of dates, how to make them work for your relationship, and why time apart can be just as important as time together. We’ll also talk about sharing the responsibility of planning so keeping the connection going doesn’t become one more thing for one person to manage. It’s a simple shift that can help you be more intentional with your time and keep dating each other even when life gets busy.

Thank you so much for listening! Don't forget to share on your social media and tag me if you loved this episode!

**This episode is sponsored by Wellness Sexpertise with Rachel Maine. Visit pure.shop/shop?sh=V9S5E8R and use my exclusive code MY9PU44 for 15% off your order!**

Resources
Relationship Regroup - WellnessSexpertise.com/freebies

Support the show

Connect with Rachel!
Instagram: @The_Rachel_Maine
Website: https://linktr.ee/WellnessSexpertise
YouTube: YouTube.com/@OwningYourSexualSelf
Facebook: Rachel Maine
Email: [email protected]

Hello! Welcome back to the Owning Your Sexual Self podcast! I’m thrilled to welcome Dr. Aumatma Simmons to the show this week! She’s a double board-certified Naturopathic Endocrinologist, best-selling author, and founder of the Holistic Fertility Institute who has spent nearly 20 years helping people better understand their hormones and fertility. She’s also the visionary behind Hormonal Leadership, bringing a whole new perspective to the connection between our hormones, energy, and burnout. I can’t wait for you to hear her insight in this conversation!

In this episode:

• How to support fertility before trying to conceive
• What fertility really looks like after 35
• What birth control does and doesn’t do for hormones
• The role toxins can play in hormone health
• Why hormone health matters beyond fertility
• How your energy shifts throughout your cycle
• Ways to work with your cycle in everyday life

Thank you so much for listening! Don't forget to share on your social media and tag me if you loved this episode!

**This episode is sponsored by Instant Hydration. Visit InstantHydration.com and use my exclusive code RACHEL33826 for 40% off your order!**

Resources
Free Fertility Analysis: MadreFertility.com

Connect with Dr Aumatma!
Instagram: @HolisticFertilityDoctor

Support the show

Connect with Rachel!
Instagram: @The_Rachel_Maine
Website: https://linktr.ee/WellnessSexpertise
YouTube: YouTube.com/@OwningYourSexualSelf
Facebook: Rachel Maine
Email: [email protected]

Hello and welcome back to the Owning Your Sexual Self podcast! I’m so happy to welcome Amber Romaniuk this week! Amber is an Emotional Eating, Digestive and Hormone Expert who has spent the last 12 years helping high achieving women break long standing patterns with food and build more confidence and trust in their bodies. Her work is deeply shaped by her own healing journey, and she now reaches women around the world through her work and The No Sugarcoating Podcast. I can’t wait for you to hear the perspective she brings to this conversation!

In this episode:

• How early experiences shape our relationship with food
•  The cycle of restriction and binge eating
•  Why emotional eating goes deeper than food
•  The problem with diet rules and restriction
•  How body image affects intimacy
•  Different ways to support a partner going through this
•  Why you should be slowing down and listening to your body

Thank you so much for listening! Don't forget to share on your social media and tag me if you loved this episode!

**This episode is sponsored by Foria. Visit ForiaWellness.com and use my exclusive code MAINE20 for 20% off your order!**

Resources:
The No Sugarcoating Podcast:
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-no-sugarcoating-podcast/id1158699464 https://amberapproved.ca/podcast/
Free Emotional Eating Quiz:
amberapproved.ca/emotional-eating-quiz/
Free Hormone Imbalance Quiz:
amberapproved.ca/hormone-imbalance-quiz
Schedule a Complimentary 30 Minute Body Freedom Session:
amberapproved.ca/body-freedom-consultation/

Connect with Amber!
Website:
https://amberapproved.ca
Socials: @AmberRomaniuk

Support the show

Connect with Rachel!
Instagram: @The_Rachel_Maine
Website: https://linktr.ee/WellnessSexpertise
YouTube: YouTube.com/@OwningYourSexualSelf
Facebook: Rachel Maine
Email: [email protected]

Hey hey hey! Welcome back to the Owning Your Sexual Self podcast! I’m so happy to have Bria Gadd, also known as The Period Whisperer, on this week! Bria is a functional diagnostic nutrition practitioner, holistic health coach, certified personal trainer, and host of The Period Whisperer podcast. Her work helps women better understand their hormones and health through midlife, especially when their bodies start responding differently to the things they’ve always done. We get into perimenopause, health debt, and why understanding what’s happening in your body can make such a difference during this stage of life.

In this episode:

• How health and hormone needs can change in midlife
• What health debt is and how it builds over time
• Why healthy habits can sometimes add more stress to the body
• What perimenopause is and when changes can begin
• How health debt and perimenopause can overlap
• Why slowing down and paying attention to your body matters 
• Practical ways to reduce health debt through sleep, nutrition, movement, and reducing unnecessary stress

Thank you so much for listening! Don't forget to share on your social media and tag me if you loved this episode!

**This episode is sponsored by Wellness Sexpertise with Rachel Maine. Visit pure.shop/shop?sh=V9S5E8R and use my exclusive code MY9PU44 for 15% off your order!**

Connect with Bria
Website: BriaThePeriodWhisperer.com
Instagram: @bria_period_whisperer

Support the show

Connect with Rachel!
Instagram: @The_Rachel_Maine
Website: https://linktr.ee/WellnessSexpertise
YouTube: YouTube.com/@OwningYourSexualSelf
Facebook: Rachel Maine
Email: [email protected]

Hello hello! We're finally back to the Owning Your Sexual Self podcast and I’m so happy to have Kayla Branstetter on today! Kayla is an English professor, TEDx speaker, researcher, and the author of Don't Be an Athena. Through her writing and research, she’s creating space for conversations that too often get pushed aside, helping women feel seen, heard, and less alone in their experiences. I loved getting to hear more about the story behind her book, the work she’s doing to challenge shame and silence around women’s health, and the incredible heart she brings to everything she creates. I know you’re going to get so much out of this conversation!

In this episode:

• Why storytelling helps women feel less alone
• The importance of creating spaces where women feel seen and heard
• Why period education and body autonomy matter for the next generation
• The lasting impact of shame, silence, and medical gaslighting
• The meaning behind Don't Be an Athena 
• Why believing women can change the way we respond to trauma

Thank you so much for listening! Don't forget to share on your social media and tag me if you loved this episode!

**This episode is sponsored by Instant Hydration. Visit InstantHydration.com and use my exclusive code RACHEL33826 for 40% off your order!**

Connect with Kayla
Website: kaylabranstetter.wpcomstaging.com
Instagram: @kbranstetter87
Get her book: kaylabranstetter.wpcomstaging.com/dont-be-an-athena-book-orders

Support the show

Connect with Rachel!
Instagram: @The_Rachel_Maine
Website: https://linktr.ee/WellnessSexpertise
YouTube: YouTube.com/@OwningYourSexualSelf
Facebook: Rachel Maine
Email: [email protected]

Hello, hello! Welcome back to the Owning Your Sexual Self podcast! I’m so happy to have Laura and Morgan here today! These two have dedicated so much of their work to helping people better understand their bodies and access information that far too many of us were never taught. Through their work in sexual health, midwifery, hormones, and body literacy, they’re helping people build trust in themselves and approach their bodies with more curiosity, confidence, and compassion. This was such a thoughtful conversation, and I know you’re going to take a lot away from it!

In this episode:

• The lack of education around hormones and cycles
• How cycle tracking can build body awareness
• The importance of body literacy
• Why every hormonal experience is unique
• Common myths about cycle phases
• Tracking apps pros and cons
• Why hormone education should start earlier

Thank you so much for listening! Don't forget to share on your social media and tag me if you loved this episode!

**This episode is sponsored by Wellness Sexpertise with Rachel Maine. Visit pure.shop/shop?sh=V9S5E8R and use my exclusive code MY9PU44 for 15% off your order!**

Connect with Laura & Morgan
Instagram: @ItsLauraAndMorgan
Website: ItsLauraAndMorgan.com
The Cycle Book can be found anywhere you buy books

Support the show

Connect with Rachel!
Instagram: @The_Rachel_Maine
Website: https://linktr.ee/WellnessSexpertise
YouTube: YouTube.com/@OwningYourSexualSelf
Facebook: Rachel Maine
Email: [email protected]

Hello hello! Welcome back to the Owning Your Sexual Self Podcast! This week’s guest is the incredible Suzanne Noble, host of the wildly popular podcast Sex Advice for Seniors and one of the most refreshing voices out there when it comes to sex, ageing, pleasure, and relationships. Suzanne brings honesty, humor, confidence, and so much lived experience into this conversation as we talk about what it really looks like to stay curious, connected, and sexual later in life. 

In this episode:

• Sex and sexuality after 50 and 60
• How menopause can impact desire and arousal
• The stigma around older adults being sexual
• The myth that sexuality has an expiration date
• How sex can become longer and more intentional with age
• Redefining relationships later in life
• Exploring kink, BDSM, and sexual creativity later in life

Thank you so much for listening! Don't forget to share on your social media and tag me if you loved this episode!

**This episode is sponsored by Instant Hydration. Visit InstantHydration.com and use my exclusive code RACHEL33826 for 40% off your order!**

Connect with Suzanne
Podcast - Sex Advice for Seniors
Website - SexAdviceforSeniors.com

Support the show

Connect with Rachel!
Instagram: @The_Rachel_Maine
Website: https://linktr.ee/WellnessSexpertise
YouTube: YouTube.com/@OwningYourSexualSelf
Facebook: Rachel Maine
Email: [email protected]