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I often get asked by OTs how I create a private space to bring up the topic of sex. But, let’s be honest. It’s just not realistic. We’d be waiting for a long time before the opportunity of a private moment presented itself, especially in an acute care setting. Between the client's family and friends, nurses, doctors, and hospital staff you can almost guarantee there’s always someone in the room.  Or think about a busy pediatric outpatient clinic with all of the families and children in the gym.  Think there's always going to be privacy to ask about sexual development and concerns and questions parents may have?  

It’s just not realistic to think we have to first create a private space to ask about sex. 

But, how can you ensure privacy for the discussion if that's what the client wants? I like to first ask about sex and intimacy during the initial evaluation. Around whoever is in the room. Spouse. Kids. Grandma. Grandpa. ...

I am reflecting on the political landscape these past few weeks and on AOTA's statement about the insurrection & white supremacy and especially the comments in response to that statement that said AOTA and OT should not be political and here are some thoughts I'd like to share.  

It's important to remember that what is happening politically in the US right now is not disconnected from our work as OTs, especially OTs working in sexuality and intimacy. It is our duty to uphold the values of occupational justice and stand up against white supremacy, systematic racism, antisemitism, islamophobia, xenophobia, transphobia, homophobia, ableism, and all other forms of oppression/harm towards others that impact people's self-determination to live as authentic and healthy sexual beings.

 Part of being a culturally humble practitioner involves reflecting on yourself and your own internal biases. It also means knowing the populations you serve and the specific harms by...

During a week when many of us are wondering, “Do I like Valentine’s Day?” “Do I not?” or “What does Valentine’s Day mean to me?" I wanted to check in with some inspo from Audre Lorde, Adrienne Maree Brown, and bell hooks. These individuals are all love and pleasure radical thought leaders giving a road map to a world that prioritizes pleasure, equity, self-actualization, and humanity. While I could never do their work justice in a short post, I wanted to direct you to their powerful words.

The current version of myself is a big fan of this external holiday.  It’s a time to study love, eroticism, and pleasure and how this shows up in my life and my work as a sexuality OT!  For me, it’s a way to center the joys of my giving and I plan out how to intentionally share a little love with my people.

But Audre, Adrienne, and bell, using Black feminist perspectives, offer us very special considerations on love...