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A book for children to get conversations about positive sexuality started, with accurate information about gender identity, gender expression, consent and self-trust. Framed in the context of empowerment and based on research findings that show that teaching pleasure and confidence are an integral part of a consensual society.
Go beyond surviving to reclaim your sexual self. If you have experienced sexual abuse, assault, harassment, or rape, you may feel disconnected from your sexual self—even if you’ve overcome the initial trauma of your experience. You are a survivor; but surviving is just the beginning. This book explores what comes next. Written by a psychotherapist and grounded in cutting-edge research, Reclaiming Pleasure picks up where other sexual trauma recovery books leave off. It offers practical tools to help you cultivate a sense of safety, security and trust in order to reclaim the vitality, pleasure and great sex you deserve. The book will also serve as your compass on a journey toward the rediscovery of desire, letting you explore what you want from others and for yourself. This groundbreaking book will help you: Understand the lasting mental, physical, sexual, and relational impacts of sexual trauma Move beyond feelings of shame Reclaim pleasure and reignite passion in your life Surviving is merely the first step in the process of recovery from sexual trauma. With this sex-positive and empowering guide, you are invited to take your recovery to the next level. You’ll feel emboldened by the desire for better sex, healthier relationships, and a more connected, pleasurable life.
Most of us want to be decent people in the world. Yet when it comes to sex, we so often stumble and contribute to sexual injustice. Think about it: are we really still blaming victims of sexual assaults? Can it truly be that there is a gender based orgasm gap? Are we actually labeling people based on the kind of sex they do or don’t have? Why do we insist on questioning if sex is consensual when someone’s passed out drunk? Our society is undergoing an evolution, and we should take this as a call to action to ensure that all people, regardless of gender identity, sexual orientation, ability, age, ethnicity, race, religion, or social class, are treated as humans worthy of respect. Good Sexual Citizenship asks us all to break down sexual hostility and build up something better. To promote understanding and empathy, Friedrichs includes a factual and historical backdrop covering gender disparities, women’s rights, sexual violence, prevention, and sex education, and challenges readers to use this insight, along with guided exercises, to examine their own potential for “good sexual citizenship.” Covering topics like consent, sexual assault, pleasure, double standards, casual sex, hook-up culture, and teen sex, she provides us with tools to navigate societal messages, sexually hostile climates, stereotypes, and outdated mentalities.
A progressive, effective, and responsible approach to sex education for parents and teens that challenges traditional teaching models and instead embraces 21st century realities by promoting healthy sexuality, values, and body image in young people. Sex education today generally falls into one of two categories: abstinence-only or abstinence-based education—both of which tend to withhold important, factual information and leave young adults ill-equipped to make safe decisions. Al Vernacchio, a high school sexuality educator who holds a Master’s degree in Human Sexuality from the University of Pennsylvania, has created a new category: sex-positive education. In For Goodness Sex, he refutes the “disaster prevention” model of sex ed, offering a progressive and realistic approach: Sexuality is a natural part of life, and healthy sexuality can only develop from a sex-positive, affirming appreciation. Curious yet fearful of being judged, young people turn to peers, the Internet, and the media, where they receive problematic messages about sex: boys are studs, girls are sluts; real sex should be like porn; hookups are better than relationships. Without a broader understanding to offset these damaging perceptions, teenagers are dangerously unprepared intellectually and emotionally to grow and develop as sexual beings. For Goodness Sex offers the tools and insights adults need to talk young people and help them develop healthy values and safe habits. With real-life examples from the classroom, exercises and quizzes, and a wealth of sample discussions and crucial information, Vernacchio offers a guide to sex education for the twenty-first century.
Sexuality and sexual identity have been relatively marginalized areas in both social work education and practice. However, changes in policy and legislation in the UK and other countries over the past decade have brought discussions of sexuality into the mainstream public service agenda. In social work and social care, gay and lesbian citizenship rights have been explicitly recognised. In the fields of adoption and fostering new regulations and guidance have helped improve and develop practice around assessment and intervention. It remains the case, however, that sex is often perceived as a problem area within social work and social care, discussed only in relation to sexually diverse communities or in the realm of dysfunction or pathology. This collection aims to generate a more proactive and challenging discussion of sexuality and sexual identity in social work. Its starting point is that sexuality is an essential aspect of individual identity, that users must be able to express their sexuality, and that it is essential for social workers to be able to respond and discuss sexual issues appropriately. The contributions are informed by feminist research, considering, in particular, the experiences of women working in and using social care services since the 1990s. In addition to a consideration of the wider policy, legislative and service providers' perspectives, the book includes reflective accounts as well as research-led contributions, offering a comprehensive and balanced account of this important field, which aims to inform both theory and practice.
It's socially acceptable to spend a day watching sports or sitcoms, but it's shameful and embarrassing to admit to the same about erotic media. Why is it that sex is so often deemed "inappropriate" and considered something we must keep private or even ignore? Our culture is afraid of sex. We feel the need to label what is normal and what isn't, and as a result, we live in a relational and sexually unhealthy culture. In reality, far more harm is caused by labeling sexual expression as "obscene" than by celebrating it. In Sex Outside the Lines: Authentic Sexuality in a Sexually Dysfunctional Culture, Chris Donaghue, PhD, explores and challenges the negative ideals that have warped society's view of sex. Sex Outside the Lines is not a dogmatic rule book, but a valuable guide to help you on your journey to sexual self-discovery and, most important, self-acceptance. Donaghue encourages you to not only explore your capacity for pleasure, but to be proud of it and to take a look at how you could be living. In his years of training in sex and couples therapy, Donaghue has developed highly successful methods for freeing clients from sexual hang-ups, enabling them to let go of shame and embarrassment. The goal isn't to be "normal"—there is no such thing. Donaghue pulls apart cultural phobias with a sex-positive therapy practice, as well as a kind of sexual deprograming that helps people see and accept that the desires they have—even if they don't align with society's expectations—are actually natural, healthy, and part of having a great sex life. Sex Outside the Lines addresses our diversity, challenges conventional psychiatric wisdom as classifying perfectly normal behavior as disorders, and disregards conventional advice from leading experts. It isn't advocating a "liberal" approach to modern concepts—it is seeking to redefine them altogether.
"Sexuality Counseling: Theory, Research, and Practice is an important resource for mental health practitioners. Sexuality is complex and rather than attempting to simplify, this book works within that complexity in a well-organized and comprehensive way." - Alexandra H. Solomon, Northwestern University Providing a comprehensive, research- and theory-based approach to sexuality counseling, this accessible and engaging book is grounded in an integrative, multi-level conceptual framework that addresses the various levels at which individuals experience sexuality. At each level (physiological, developmental, psychological, gender identity and sexual orientation, relational, cultural/contextual, and positive sexuality), the authors emphasize practical strategies for assessment and intervention. Interactive features, including case studies, application exercises, ethics discussions, and guided reflection questions, help readers apply and integrate the information as they develop the professional competency needed for effective practice.
Preventing Sexual Harm provides an overview of current criminal justice strategies for tackling sexual violence, and highlights existing positive criminological approaches that could help prevent sexual abuse and harm. Sexual violence is a complex, multi-faceted crime. Its causes and consequences are both multiple and enduring and our understanding of sexual violence is embedded within our social, cultural, and political constructs. As such, a response to sexual violence ought to be equally complex and multi-faceted. Alternative approaches might therefore be needed, such as positive criminology. This book explores positive criminology as a mechanism to reduce the risk of recidivism, eradicate harm, prevent reoffending as well as to help reintegrate those with histories of sexual abuse back into the community. In light of recent historic cases of sexual abuse and poor institutional response to these allegations, it opens with an overview of the current landscape of sexual offending. The book then reviews the current positive criminological approaches already in existence in the effort to prevent sexual abuse by outlining the approach of positive criminology and by demonstrating the many gaps in practice that might benefit from this new way of working to prevent sexual abuse. By highlighting that an alternative response to sexual violence is needed, and by presenting the idea that a positive criminological paradigm is worthy of further examination, this book will be of great interest to scholars of criminology, criminal justice, and forensic psychology.
Offering a new take on the psychology of human sexuality, Sexpositive integrates modern day themes such as technology and the use of social media with self-help. This is the book that millennial's will turn to in order to rewrite the story of their love lives. Life on this planet would not exist if it weren’t for one thing, sexual intercourse! Developing our understanding sexual consciousness; defined as an awareness of each other and ourselves as sexually conscious beings, is key if we want to see humanity evolve and thrive through our energetic awareness of one another. The SexPositive movement has its roots in this founding ideology. It is a social, political and philosophical movement that promotes and embraces sexuality and sexual expression, with an emphasis on safe and consensual sex. Never before has there been a stronger cultural narrative about the awakening of our sexual consciousness and the crucial importance of building #SexPositive relationships. For the first time ever, Dr. Kelly Neff offers readers a ground-breaking self help book that fuses scientific sexology research, psychological theorizing, Eastern & Western philosophies, and stories from around the world, all in the context of the world’s massive social and political shifts surrounding sex, love and identity. The first part of the book address our personal growth as sexually conscious beings in our current cultural climate, unpacking the constructs of gender and sexual orientation, social conditioning via mass media, whilst exploring non-monogamous relationships, the Techno sexual Revolution, as well as looking at sex as an energetic experience. The second part of the book takes a more practical approach providing tools, tips and exercises to help create and maintain SexPositive relationships.
