Find a Sex Therapist in DC
What is Sex Therapy?
Sex therapy is a form of psychotherapy that focuses on issues, concerns, and areas of exploration pertaining to one’s sex life, sexual health, and relationship to sex. The topic of sex, even in some therapy settings, tends to be a more taboo topic. At Modern Intimacy, we are passionate about creating safe and comfortable spaces where people can talk about sex without fear of judgement.
Sex therapy typically involves a combination of talk therapy, sex education, and specific exercises or interventions to address the unique needs of individuals or couples. Sex therapists aim to create a safe and non-judgmental space for clients to discuss their concerns openly. They may also provide information about sexual anatomy, physiology, and function to enhance understanding of human sexuality and how it pertains to their specific situation(s).
Sex therapy is a collaborative process, and the goals are determined by the individual or couple seeking help. The aims of sex therapy can be to improve sexual well-being, enhance communication, and promote overall relationship satisfaction.
What Can Sex Therapy Help With?
Sex therapy can be helpful when someone is experiencing struggled within their sex life, either as an individual or in their relationship(s). Some of the more common issues/goals that bring people to sex therapy include, but are not limited to:
- Discrepancy in desire with partner
- Low libido or no libido
- Compulsive sexual behaviors
- Healing from sexual trauma
- Improving communication about sex
- Exploring sexual desires, preferences, and fantasies
- Reducing shame and embarrassment about sex
- Sexual dysfunctions
- Struggles to achieve orgasm
- Introducing kink & BDSM to a relationship
- Working through infidelity and betrayal trauma
- Establishing sexual empowerment
- Performance anxiety
- Understanding sexual and/or gender identity
- Developing a healthy + fulfilling relationship with sex
- Enhancing pleasure and connection during sex
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Teletherapy Service Available
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Is Sex Therapy Separate from Therapy for Mental Health?
What we’ve found is that there is often a significant link between sex and mental health and the two often influence each other. Before someone becomes a sex therapist, they first are a mental health professional. Sex therapists are often licensed mental health professionals including psychologists, marriage and family therapists, clinical social workers, and professional counselors so they are educated and competent at treating mental health conditions in addition to address sexual health and intimacy concerns.
One important reason it can be helpful to specifically seek out therapy with a sex therapist is due to their specialized comprehensive training around human sexuality. Sex therapists have training that goes beyond the fundamental sexuality class many graduate student trainees tend to receive from their academic psychology programs. This means that sex therapists tend to be better equipped at providing education about human sexuality and how that connects to one’s unique experiences, relationships, and psychology.
An added bonus is that sex therapists are very comfortable talking about sex. They likely have done their own work to normalize conversations about sex to that nothing is off-limits when working with clients.
We see it as our clients getting the benefits of two disciplines in terms of mental and psychological well-being as well as relationship and human sexuality expertise.
I’m Interested in Sex Therapy, but My Partner Isn’t Ready. Can I Get Started on My Own?
You can participate in sex therapy either individually or with a partner. It’s not uncommon for couples to be in different stages of readiness when it comes to addressing issues within a relationship. Therapy works best when all parties are committed to the process. If your partner is just not there yet, it doesn’t hurt to explore sex therapy on your own as a starting point to understanding your own perspective and experiences around sex better.
We work both with individuals and couples so if and when your partner is ready to join you in the process, we can always talk about options for adding or transitioning to couples work.
Does Sex Therapy Involve Sexual Contact?
Sex therapy, like other forms of therapy, abides by firm boundaries that product both the client and therapist from harm. In other forms of therapy, sexual touch is one of the most significant legal and ethical boundaries and this also applies to sex therapy.
While sex therapy includes conversation and interventions that pertain to clients’ sex lives, physical touch, any contact that crosses professional boundaries, or is considered inappropriately sexual between client and therapist is prohibited.
Within the realm of sexual therapies, there are branches of professions such as sexological bodywork or surrogate sex therapists which do sometimes involve more hands-on interventions. Modern Intimacy does not currently offer those services; however, we’d be happy to speak with you about what you’re seeking and provide appropriate referrals if needed.
I Live in Washington DC, but I’d Prefer Video Sessions. Is That Possible?
Modern Intimacy is a remote therapy practice which means that our services are offered virtually, or through Telehealth. Sessions are conducted over video using a HIPAA-compliant platform.
For Telehealth sessions, please ensure you are attending from a quiet and private location. We want to ensure you are both comfortable and that your private information is protected at all times. Please note that we do not offer in-person sessions in Washington DC at this time.
I’m Interested, but Still Have a Few Questions. Who Can I Speak with at Modern Intimacy?
We’d be more than happy to speak with you and answer any questions you might have. Please schedule a complimentary 30-minute consultation with one of our Intake Specialists. This is a confidential call where we will learn more about your goals to ensure that we can help with your goals and also provide any information about our practice that might be helpful.
We look forward to connecting with you soon!