What do sexologist do

HuffPost Personal Video Horoscopes. Follow Us. Terms Privacy Policy. Part of HuffPost Relationships. All rights reserved. Sexologists can use their knowledge in a number of ways. Suggest a correction. Country's T. Now What? Newsletter Sign Up. Sarah and John have been together for two years and have recently become engaged.

Sarah has always experienced pain during penetrative sex. She wants to have penetration with John, but is fearful that it will hurt and hence avoids doing it. John was a virgin until he met Sarah. He always wanted to be sexually active but the opportunity did not arise for him to experience sex before he met and fell in love with Sarah. Although Sarah and John are sexually active together, their attempts at sexual intercourse have been fraught with difficulties.

He can attain an erection both during masturbation and oral sex with Sarah, but when they begin the penetration he loses his erection. Sarah and John have heard that they can talk to someone about their concerns and they make an appointment to see a sexologist. During the late s — despite the social attitudes of sexual repression in the Victorian era — more liberal attitudes towards sexuality began to be presented in England and Germany.

In , for instance, Richard Freiherr von Krafft-Ebing published Psychopathia Sexualis, which is considered to be the leading work that established sexology as a scientific discipline. Within a decade or so, English medical doctor and sexologist Havelock Ellis challenged the sexual taboos of his era, specifically regarding masturbation and homosexuality.

His book Sexual Inversion, described the sexual relations of homosexual males and is considered to be the first objective study of homosexuality. This is where sex therapy comes in. Sex therapy involves 50 to minute sessions where you can discuss your sexual concerns or curiosities with a sexologist in a judgement-free space. And what people see a sexologist for will be totally varied; from sexual dysfunctions like vaginismus , erectile dysfunction or anorgasmia, to sexual concerns such as intimacy issues, sexual anxiety or overcoming a history of sexual trauma.

People might also see a sexologist in the absence of any issues too. In these cases, it might be to better understand their erotic identity, to talk through new sexual acts or exploring non-monogamy, to learn more about their bodies and their pleasure map, or to simply receive normative and accurate sex education.

They will also assess your mental and physical health, and inquire about your general lifestyle factors like diet, social connection, exercise, work circumstances and more. Once your sexologist has an understanding of your circumstances, they can make a treatment plan and address each relevant factor that might be contributing to your issue. You can expect to learn more about your thought processes and how they influence your feelings and behaviours, you might learn techniques to help overcome challenging beliefs about yourself, and you might be given mindfulness tips to quieten negative or irrational thoughts.

You might do a few exercises in the session to assist with all of this. While a lot of the work happens in these sessions, the majority of the work happens at home, in your own space. Sex therapists give a lot of homework. These might be sexual activities, games or conversations you should explore with your partner, trying mindful masturbation or erotic self-touch, using mindfulness techniques during sexual experiences, exploring erotic activities outside of sex, or putting restrictions on certain behaviours like orgasm, penetration or genital touching to help broaden your sexual repertoire — just to name a few!

And, if some of you were wondering, yes clothes stay on, and nobody has sex in sex therapy. If you think you might benefit from a hands-on approach, the amazing work of sex surrogates or sexological bodyworkers might be the right direction for you. Feel free to Google your nearest one.