What Is a Sex Therapist? 7 Ways Sex Therapists Help Clients

A certified sex therapist is a professional who helps clients with their sexual health, identifying individuals’ and couples’ sexual concerns and addressing how to enact healthier and more pleasurable sexual activity. Human sexuality manifests in several ways, and sex therapists consider sexual behavior an essential part of one’s wellness, providing talk therapy and psychotherapy to empower one’s sexual performance. Sex therapists may be clinical social workers, marriage and family therapists, or a member of the AASECT (American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors and Therapists).

With an academic and professional background in sex education, sex therapists are healthcare professionals who prioritize clients’ sexual expression in their personal lives. To that end, therapists help clients work through several sexual issues in the following ways:

• Celebrate all sexual orientations. Sex drives are complex, and attraction is more fluid than set. Some forms of sexual orientation are taboo in various faiths and cultures, and sex therapists can help clients overcome sexual trauma to improve their overall well-being.
• Identify the couple’s sexual problems. Sexual desire may wane in relationships, and sex therapy sessions can get couples to talk about their preferred forms of physical contact to improve each person’s sexual experience in the bedroom.
• Reignite sexual drive. These therapists also play a crucial role in helping couples reignite their libidos, improving the relationship and marital satisfaction. Sex therapists can also, on a more holistic level, encourage clients to try new positions and safely explore kinks to widen one’s range of sexual pleasures.
• Discuss sexual abuse. Sexual abuse can lead to longstanding trauma, increased performance anxiety, and trust issues. Some people find sexual contact triggering, so sex therapists can also double as mental health professionals helping those affected by trauma practice masturbation, discover sexual preferences, and build trust with new partners.
• Overcome sexual difficulties. Injuries and medical conditions may lead to painful intercourse, so sex therapists help clients find ways to improve sexual functioning in safe and healthy ways. Erectile dysfunction can also affect sexual partners, so therapists will discover methods for couples to enjoy sexual satisfaction.
• Empower sexual expression. If trauma, self-doubt, or sexual repression inhibit one’s sex life, therapists can empower patients and give them the tools needed to express themselves assuredly.
• Build sexual confidence. Sex therapists help in various important ways, most of which improve sexual confidence. People often tie sexual confidence to self-worth, and sex therapy can help clients unlock self-esteem, be better sexual partners, and learn how to more clearly and safely articulate sexual preferences.

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