Lyndsey Murray, Certified Sex Therapist, and I take a deep dive into the myths surrounding rape in relationships. Lyndsey is not only an LPC and AASECT certified sex therapist with a thriving practic in TX, she is also the co-host of one of my new favorite podcasts, Sex Positivity Unfiltered. We share our personal stories about rape, talk about where the breakdown in sex education needs fixin, and the patriarchal societal grooming that feeds these myths needs a kick to the crotch.

Give Lyndsey Murray and Denise Stratton a listen at:

https://www.sexpositivityunfiltered.com/

Find out more about Lyndsey and her practice at:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sextherapywithlyndsey

IG: @lyndseymurraycst

In the wake of the Danny Masterson sentencing, we are taking a deep dive into the psychology of fanatic religious groups. Our guest, Ellen Line, of Roar Wellness is a LCSW-C therapist practicing in Maryland who specializes in relational trauma. She gives insight into how Group Think in fanatic church settings, persecution complexes, and blak and white thinking can contribute to silencing survivors of sexual violence in such settings. She also gives advice on how we can support survivors.

You can learn more about Ellen if you visit her website roarwellness.co. Sign up for her newsletter while you're there. You won't be disappointed.

As always, if you have any questions or would like me to tackle a societal myth, untruth, flat out lie, or just simply say "Hey, thanks, this resonated with me." feel free to email me at [email protected]. You can get a FREE Self-Love Guide by hitting subscribe when you visit www.theintimacyally.com.

Have a fantastic week, my lovelies! Don't let 'em steal your shine!

***Rape/Sexual Violence Trigger Warning***

This is the first of a 4 part series on rape myths I have called the Sexual Violence Myth Collection in my notes. This first one delves into the Danny Masterson sentencing a bit before launching us into 10 common rape and sexual violence myths perpetuated by our society. The next 3 episodes I will have expert guests on to discuss different myths shared here in more depth and give some perspective from a mental health provider standpoint. In this episode, I do share about my personal history with rape and sexual violence.

Part of my draw to becoming a sex coach was to help women who may be scared to seek traditional medical or psychological help because those systems have historically failed them know that they are not alone. I would like to clarify that I was not married to the man who raped me in a relationship and I did not end up pressing charges on anyone who has been sexually violent with me. I know my rights in my state and have time to change my mind on that, but for now, for me, in my current version of myself, it would do more harm than good to report.

Please reach out if you have a personal story or just want to talk to someone who has been there who will just listen without judgement. You can message me through my website, www.theintimacyally.com or email me directly at [email protected]

May this episode bring you comfort in knowing that we are part of a movement out to squash these rape culture cultivated social norms!

Other resources from this episode:

https://rainn.org/

https://www.rainn.org/statistics/victims-sexual-violence

More of us than we would like to admit have fallen for this one. We have gotten it into our heads that if we are not a 10 on the hotness scale, if we are not model-level attractive, then we should just take what we can get when it comes to relationships. In this episode, I expose that social norm as utter marlarkey!

Don't forget to follow and share if you dig the podcast!

Subscribe at www.theintimacyally.com for your FREE Self-Love Guide. Email me at [email protected] for more information on the amazing portrait artist Rebecca Edwards of Crooked House Creations!

Did you grow up thinking faking orgasms was the norm? Did you have to lie about enjoying sex and you believed that was socially acceptable? Congratulations, I think you're like 90% of women! What if we no longer accepted faking it as a prerequisite for being sexually active? What if instead, we decided that we are never going to close the pleasure gap if the person on the other side of our faked orgasm is acting on bad information? Think how many legit and glorious orgasms could happen if we challenged this thought pattern!

You’ve seen it 1000 times.  I know the first time I can remember it was watching When Harry Met Sally (probably way too young) but all the same by 10 years old, a ways before I actually had any sex, I knew that it was understood that women faked having orgasms.  Not only did they fake them, but it was socially acceptable AND expected.

Want to learn more about closing the pleasure gap? Subscribe at my website, www.theintimacyally.com and get your FREE Self-Love Guide! It is your introduction to finding your Dating/Relationship inner Sexy Self-Esteem Queen.

We are a touch-starved, touch-deprived, Puritanical society and we only make ourselves look foolish when we assume that someone trying to heal those broken bonds of safe and kind touch is automatically doing something erotic. Join me for my first interview episode with Jasmine Siemon, long time professional cuddler, and FORGIVE ME because my mic was not working, but Jasmine's was, so I'm super quiet, but guess what, she's the one I wanted you to hear anyway. She talks not only pro-cuddling, but gets real about what so many of us go through as women after divorce, her entrepreneurship, and how this form of therapy has helped her open worlds for people in the realm of human connection.

Check out Jasmine at www.tangewellness.com for more information on her practice. She has been a platonic touch practitioner, cuddle therapist, or professional cuddler for almost a decade! She has seen the transformations that can occur and the speeding of the healing process that can come from this intriguing modality.

Don't forget to follow me @theintimacyally on social media and head to my website, www.theintimacyally.com and subscribe for your FREE self-love guide! Follow the podcast on your favorite platform.

Today, we're going to be talking about something that is near and dear to my heart because I am very annoyed with how much I hear about it and how it is still a thing. The story that we are going to shake down today is don't show your true self upfront. Now when I say that, what I'm talking about is the advice that many of you have gotten to hide your true selves when you are starting a new relationship.

Where does this lie come from and how can we combat it in this ever-growing world of online dating? How can we present ourselves as our most authentic version to up our odds of finding true connection?

Dont forget to follow me on social media @theintimacyally and subscribe at www.theintimacyally.com to get your free Self-Love guide.

Email me at [email protected] or go to my website to schedule a discovery call for 1:1 or couples coaching.

Have you ever heard the story "Break-ups Are a Sign of Failure?" Well, we're gonna go over a ton of reasons why that just isn't show. Don't let society dictate to you that you need to stay in a bad or meaningless relationship just to prove that you powered through. You are just as valuable as a single person as one in a couple, throuple, or pod!

For more info, follow me on social media @theintimacyally

Don't forget to subscribe for your FREE self-love guide at www.theintimacyally.com