The Love Drive with Shaun Galanos

By Shaun Galanos

No-nonsense advice on sex, love, relationships, and dating for hopeful romantics, love cynics, and everyone navigating modern love, hosted by Love Coach Shaun Galanos.

The Love Drive is for women tir... more

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The podcast currently has 237 episodes available.

Best of The Love Drive with Shaun Galanos

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Number 1: A guide to eating pussy with Amy Baldwin
The manosphere thinks going down on a woman is gay, submissive, or a low-return waste of time. It's wrong on all three — so I brought in an expert to help me prove it. In this crossover episode — Shameless Love — I sit down with sex educator Amy Baldwin from the Shameless Sex podcast for an honest, explicit, and useful guide to going down on women. We take apart the manosphere nonsense, then get practical: how to get out of your head as a receiver, real anatomy (yes, Amy brought a vulva puppet), hygiene without the shame, communication that actually works, and my field-tested tips for being great at this — plus a rapid-fire hot-or-not round to finish. Ten years ago I wrote a blog called What Women Wish You Knew About Eating Pussy. Consider this the 2.0. Explicit. Headphones recommended. Mentioned in this episodeShe Comes First — Ian KernerEmily Nagoski ("same parts, organized differently")Dan SavageMidori — the "pussy hug"Feeld (dating app) · Uberlube Amy's book, Shameless Sex What women wished you knew about eating pussy blog post LinksShameless Sex: podcast + shamelesssex.com (couples retreats, Oct 2026) Connect with Shaun Read the blog The Love Drive Podcast Instagram: @thelovedrive More about Shaun Buy me a coffee
July 16, 20261h 14min
Number 2: To the best rope gun I know: a eulogy for Josh
On July 13th, I lost one of my dear friends. Josh Kalven was diagnosed with a rare, aggressive cancer in March and died four months later. He was a husband, a dad to a five-year-old, and a sweet friend. This episode is a eulogy. I read Josh the letter I wrote him in June, back when we still thought he'd beat it. It's full of stuck ropes, bad slab, his famous hummus sandwich, and everything he taught me about climbing and friendship. And I talk about grief. What losing my dad, my dog, and now Josh has taught me. How devastating it is, and, if you can find it, how beautiful. Grief is unexpressed love. Maybe. It's also expressed love. If there's someone you love who doesn't know it, and an email you've been meaning to send, let this be your invitation to send it. I'm taking August off to move into the new place and rest, so this is the last episode until September. If it touches you, share it with someone who needs it. And I'd love to hear from you. Leave me a voicemail at 415-494-9559 or an email at [email protected]. Take good care of yourself and the people you love. Connect with Shaun: Read my blog: https://shaungalanos.substack.com The Love Drive Podcast: https://shaungalanos.com/podcast/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thelovedrive/ More About Shaun: https://shaungalanos.com/about/ Buy me a coffee: https://buymeacoffee.com/thelovedrive
July 23, 202618min
Number 3: Herpes is just a skin rash — with Debbie Barish, NP
Most adults in the world carry the virus that causes herpes. Most of them don't know it. And the shame around it is doing more damage than the virus. This week I sit down with Debbie Barish, DNP, MS, WHNP-BC — a board-certified women's health nurse practitioner with 32 years in sexual and reproductive health — for a no-shame, no-bullshit conversation about herpes (both HSV-1 and HSV-2). We get into what it actually is, how it's actually transmitted, why your standard STI panel doesn't test for it, what suppression therapy can (and can't) do, how to talk about it with a partner, and why this one virus carries so much more shame than other, often more serious, STIs. I also share my own diagnosis story for the first time on the show. We cover:What HSV actually is — and the difference (or lack of one) between HSV-1 and HSV-2Why most new genital herpes cases today are HSV-1How transmission really happens, and why 70% of cases come from people who don't know they have itWhy HSV is not part of a standard STI panel — and the one situation where a blood test is actually usefulWhat a first outbreak feels like, and how to take care of yourself through itSuppression therapy: how it works, how effective it is, what the side-effect profile actually looks likeDisclosure: when to tell a partner, how to say it, and what to do if they react badlyWhy herpes carries the stigma it does — and where that stigma comes fromHSV in pregnancyDebbie's own diagnosis story (including a 26-year-later reunion with the firefighter who gave it to her) Resources mentioned:World Health Organization — Herpes simplex virus fact sheet — global stats and overviewWashington University in St. Louis HSV research — Debbie's go-to source for current, accurate herpes informationAmerican Sexual Health Association (ASHA) — US, but the patient-facing info is universalPlanned Parenthood — STI information — US-based, info applies globallySF City Clinic — STI-specialized clinic in San Francisco (model for what to look for locally) If you're outside the US: Search for your country's national sexual health service. In the UK, Terrence Higgins Trust and the NHS herpes page. In Australia, Better Health Channel or Family Planning Australia. In Canada, Sex & U. Most public health systems have free or low-cost sexual health clinics — use them. Find Debbie: @thenewdebbieb on Instagram — where she posts zines and art journals about sexual and reproductive health. Citation for the transmission number: The 50% figure I give at the end of the episode is from Corey et al., 2004, New England Journal of Medicine — the landmark study on daily valacyclovir as suppression therapy for HSV-2 transmission. Read the study here. Heads-up: This episode talks openly about shame, self-image after diagnosis, and mental health. If those topics are heavy for you right now, take care of yourself listening. Connect with Shaun: Retreats and latest offerings: https://bit.ly/m/thelovedrive Read my blog: https://shaungalanos.substack.com The Love Drive Podcast: https://shaungalanos.com/podcast/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thelovedrive/ More About Shaun: https://shaungalanos.com/about/ Buy me a coffee: https://buymeacoffee.com/thelovedrive
May 21, 20261h 15min
Number 4: (Replay) The year I gave erotic massages
I'm sharing some of my favorite episodes throughout September, and this replay is a peek into a part of my life I don't talk about very often: my time giving erotic massage to women in San Francisco. A friend asks me how it started, what actually happened in those sessions, and what it eventually cost me. About a third of my clients cried on the table. Most of them weren't starved for sex. They were touch-starved, and I don't think that's changed much. We talk about touch, trust, and what can happen when you let yourself receive without giving anything back. There's a turn about halfway through. I'm not going to spoil it. This is a replay from 2019. New episodes return in October. Got something you want me to answer in a future Q&A? Leave it at https://thelovedrive.com/ask/ Mentions: Aphrodite's Daughters Book Follow & Subscribe If this episode moved you, share it with someone who needs it. Word of mouth is everything for an independent podcast. Connect with me ⁠Read the blog⁠ ⁠The Love Drive Podcast⁠ ⁠Instagram: @thelovedrive⁠ ⁠More about Shaun⁠ ⁠Buy me a coffee⁠
September 10, 20261h 22min
Number 5: Why lonely men join the Manosphere with Laura Ramadei
I've been thinking a lot about why so many men end up looking for belonging in all the wrong places. This conversation starts with the manosphere, but it quickly becomes something much bigger. Laura Ramadei and I talk about why so many boys and men are starving for connection, why "fix yourself" advice so often misses the point, and how loneliness can make almost anyone vulnerable to people selling certainty. We get into emotional safety, friendship between men and women, why relational skills matter far beyond dating, and why being seen for who you are will always be more valuable than chasing status, money, or someone else's definition of success. I also share some of my own experience with validation, why I spent years looking for it in sex and relationships, and what I'm still learning about opening my heart instead of protecting it. This one's about choosing connection over performance. Mess and all. Mentioned in this episode Louis Theroux – Inside the Manosphere (Netflix) https://www.netflix.com/tudum/articles/louis-theroux-inside-the-manosphere-release-date-news "Small Hands, Big Heart" (Girthmaster & Small Hands parody) https://www.facebook.com/61556509147521/videos/small-hands-big-heart-smallhands/1157398549907361/ Girls on Porn Podcast https://www.girlsonporn.com/ About Laura Ramadei Laura Ramadei is a sexologist and intimacy coach. She's the Safety Director at one of Los Angeles' most prominent play parties and the host of the Girls on Porn podcast. Laura works with individuals, couples, and groups, specializing in relationship counseling, desire discrepancy, non-monogamy, queer identity, and kink. Connect with Laura Website https://www.intimacywithlaura.com/ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/intimacywithlaura/ Substack https://intimacywithlaura.substack.com/ Connect with Shaun Retreats and latest offerings: https://bit.ly/m/thelovedrive Read my blog: https://shaungalanos.substack.com The Love Drive Podcast: https://shaungalanos.com/podcast/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thelovedrive/ More About Shaun: https://shaungalanos.com/about/ Buy me a coffee: https://buymeacoffee.com/thelovedrive
June 18, 20261h 10min