For most of us, our sex education was confusing, dull and scary… we were ultimately taught:
“Don’t have sex!!!”
We missed out on learning about consent, connection, PLEASURE, anatomy, exploration, play and were left to find out on our own.
Times are changing and our expectations for sex are too. We’re in the midst of a sexual revolution, and more than ever, people are getting to know their sexual selves and owning what turns them on, they’re exploring sexual empowerment – and yearning for it. There’s a communal desire to feel more pleasure, realness and intimacy in sex with themselves and others. Whilst naming it as a “revolution” seems huge, it also feels right. Flowing on from a dramatic rise in practices like yoga, tantra and meditation, there is now a greater push to not only engage with but also research the benefits of these Eastern traditions. For the first time, research is being conducted on a neurological level so we can now actually see how mindful practices impact our body, our brain development and our nervous system.
There’s so much information out there now too, and new resources created for people to explore authentic sexual empowerment and get educated on sex. Now more than ever there is a growing need and demand for spaces and practices that integrate education on mindfulness with sex, with presence and pleasure.
Health Space has acknowledged their communities desire to explore heightened connections with their sexuality, and this will be reflected in workshops and sessions we run this year. It’s still a fairly new momentum, and there’s very little opportunity to learn in a safe space, which is why I’m working with Health Space and putting on a workshop this february to change the way we teach sex (more information included below).
If this has sparked your interest and you want to get started right now, there are a few things you can do to explore your sensual capacities when having sex or selfpleasuring.
- Be inquisitive and listen to your body: Treat sex like an exploration, without the goal of climax. Self pleasuring regularly without a goal can build new neural pathways in the brain when aroused during sex. Try stopping before you climax, go slowly, take time with your body, your genitals and practice savouring every sensation as it arises. If something feels good, go with it! If it’s uncomfortable or painful, stop. Some cues you can give yourself or your partner “I wonder what it would feel like if…”, “I’d like to explore softer/harder/faster/slower/gentler/wilder touch”
- Focus your attention through all of your senses: Touch is often the only sense people are aware of when it comes to sex, but all of your senses can be really effective in bringing you back into your body and the present moment. It can also work to heighten states of arousal and increase pleasure.
- Observe thoughts that come up without being attached to them: “What am i going to eat after this” or “shit i forgot to reply to stacey”… it’s so easy to get distracted, and it happens often in sex. Without getting annoyed that you slipped out of the moment, breathe, and come back to your senses. You can practice being present in a mindful masturbation session or sex with a partner/s. Start with a mindfulness practice where either you or someone else strokes your genitals, with no goal other than to feel whatever sensations are occurring in either person’s body in each moment. Another way you can practice mindfulness is to slow down and notice the sensations you are feeling in your body throughout the day.
- Bring attention to how and where you feel sexual (it could be your ears it could be your knees!): Ask yourself where you feel sexual, and spend time observing what that feels like. What kind of touch would heighten this? What would make you feel more sensual? If you don’t know, experiment.
- Be patient and kind to your body and your ‘sensual journey’: Sometimes, you won’t feel anything at all, other days, you may experience a spine tingling body orgasm. An array of feelings can come up in sex, and that’s all a part of your sensual journey towards your sexual identity. Sex is a practice, so treat it like that… and practice often.
The Workshop
Pleasure play: the sex education you never got but always wanted
Did your sex-ed let you down?
Join sex educator and intimacy coach, Georgia Grace, in an engaging and playful workshop that explores sex, expectations and a deepening access to pleasure. Together, we’ll work through the sex education you really wanted and move from performance anxiety into a journey of fulfilment. You can expect to have fun and see sex as something that is normal, acceptable and beneficial to all.
You’ll learn:
- practical tools to give and receive
- creative communication
- how to bring mindfulness to sex with self and others
- setting & respecting boundaries
- breath-work
- mind blowing touch in a way that’s consensual, healthy and pleasurable
- real talk, none of the clinical, confusing chat that is usually paired with sex-ed
Where:
Health Space, Potts Point
Who:
Everyone, every relationship status, body, gender identification, age (+18), heritage, experience and background.
What to bring:
An open mind
The host:
I am a sex educator and intimacy coach, who aims to bring mindfulness to sex and empower people to love their sensuality through intimate, authentic and fun connections with self and other. I offer coaching for individuals, couples, groups and help people to meet or reclaim their sensual identity.
As a graduate from the Institute of Somatic Sexology, I have been trained in direct experiential learning and a clientcentered approach which aims to educate and support people to become more aware of their bodies, sex and sexuality.
I have a background in public relations, events and journalism and I write a regular sex column for Body+Soul about life as a somatic sex educator. Owning my sensuality has made me feel powerful, and has taught me a lot about my boundaries and what really turns me on – I hope to do the same for people I work with. I’m honoured to be a part of the current sexual revolution and excited to see sensuality become normal, acceptable, beneficial and accessible to all.
