Sex is everywhere. Yet meaningful conversations about intimacy are still wrapped in silence, shame, and confusion. Low desire, erectile struggles, or difficulty with orgasm get framed as personal failures when they should be framed as messages from the body shaped by culture, conditioning, anxiety, and emotional overwhelm.

In this premiere episode of The RISE to Intimacy Podcast, I invite you to gain a deeper understanding of what actually gets in the way of desire. Drawing on my decade of experience as a sex and couples therapist, I unpack how social expectations quietly disconnect us from our bodies, how performance anxiety hijacks pleasure, and why emotional regulation and communication are the missing foundations for intimacy.

2:37 – A cultural myth that quietly shapes how desire shows up or shuts down in women

5:42 – An example of how men also face societal conditioning during their childhood

7:34 – The impact on romantic relationships between men and women as a result

8:33 – How performance anxiety can sneak into the bedroom

11:23 – How a lack of emotional regulation creates distance before sex even enters the picture

12:25 – What rebuilding desire actually requires

Mentioned In Why Sex Feels Like Pressure Instead of Pleasure

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