The Erotic Philosopher

Join us for the final episode of Season 4 while I take a break for a while and you have time to catch up on all the past episodes you may have missed. While you’re here a HUGE request to please leave us a rating and review on Apple – your reviews make such a difference to our visibility and viability to return with even more episodes. To remain ad free and bullshit free – your support REALLY matters Now this episode’s guest...someone whose internet presence is as witty and acerbic as it is compassionate and insightful. Known online for his love of cats, Satan and horror films, Dr. Eric Sprankle ushers in the new wave of academia and sexology for a new generation. Dr. Eric Sprankle is a Professor of Clinical Psychology at Minnesota State University, Mankato where he is also the co-founder and co-director of the Sexuality Studies program. Dr. Sprankle received his doctorate in clinical psychology from Xavier University and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Minnesota Medical School's Program in Human Sexuality. His current research focuses on the intersections of sexuality, stigma, and Satanism. His first book, DIY: The Wonderfully Weird History and Science of Masturbation will be published late 2023. In this interview we dive into the history of masturbation, (did you even know masturbation had a history??) and we'll talk about some of the ways masturbation is both lauded and misunderstood, and often blamed for the many ills of the world. Out of the closet and into the open, masturbation for many of us is our first erotic experience and certainly our longest term sexual partner, so, let’s talk about it like it matters. Enjoy todays discussion with Dr Eric Sprankle on all  podcast platforms and watch the interview on You Tube www.drsprankle.com Follow @DrSprankle Follow @theeroticphilos on IG & Twitter. Follow Cyndi @cyndi_darnell or website www.cyndidarnell.com

Today's guest is Kate Loree, is a sex-positive licensed marriage and family therapist with a specialty in non-monogamous, kink, LGBTQ, and sex worker communities and the author of Open Deeply: A Guide to Building Conscious, Compassionate Open Relationships. She cohosts her own sex-positive podcast, Open Deeply, with Sunny Megatron. In this episode Kate and I dig into the work of intimate relationships and she offers insight into how we can show up better in our relationships. We look at how to manage triggers during communication, what to do when a situation feels dire and hopeless and how attachment injuries impact non-monogamy. Enjoy today's interview with Kate Loree on all  podcast platforms and watch the interview on You Tube Follow @theeroticphilos on IG & Twitter. Follow Cyndi @cyndi_darnell or website www.cyndidarnell.com  Kate’s website is www.kateLoree.com Instagram @opendeeplywithkateloree TikTok: @opendeeplywithkateloree Facebook  @kateloreelmft Twitter @kateloreelmft

This week is Cuckweek! Who knew? - not me until I recorded this interview with Dr. David Ley, someone whose work I have followed for many years and indeed the world's foremost expert into the world of cukolding, hot wife-ing and the impact of religonn on human sexuality. Dr David Ley is a clinical psychologist, sex therapist and author, based in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He's the author of several books and research articles on sexuality, including his first book, Insatiable Wives, Women Who Stray and the Men Who Love Them, known as the “Bible of Cuckolding.” With Justin Lehmiller and columnist Dan Savage, Dr. Ley published the first empirical research on cuckolding. Dr. Ley is a frequent guest in media around the world, with appearances in sources such as the New York Times, CNN and Time Magazine, to Hustler and Playboy magazines. In this interview we trace the origins of David's work in unpacking human sexuality, how he developed his signature brand of open minded inquiry and curiosity, and the errrors in judgement he made early in his clinical career. Then we pivot into his ground breaking exploration of the world of cuckolding or hot wives, and how the cuck world is become a movment of erotic awakening unto itsef. Enjoy today's interview with Dr David Ley on all  podcast platforms and watch the interview on You Tube Follow @theeroticphilos on IG & Twitter. Follow Cyndi @cyndi_darnell or website www.cyndidarnell.com  Follow Dr. Ley: twitter @drdavidley Insta @davidleyphd Don't forget to leave us a rating and review

Today's guest is an absolute delight and I am thrilled to introduce you to Goody Howard. Goody is an award-winning sexologist, educator, and consultant. She provides pleasure development and professional development workshops worldwide. Her authentic and enthusiastic presentation style allows her audiences to connect quickly to the concepts and enjoy learning about sexual health, pleasure, and human variance equity. She makes pleasure-inclusive, comprehensive sex education accessible, intentional, and fun! While Goody’s pleasure-focused offerings are her most popular classes, she also teaches relevant career development workshops for educators, social workers, and healthcare providers. In this interview Goody and I talk about her evolution into the work of pleasure focused sex education, how her background has moved her along and within the obstacles she has faced to create pleasure focused inclusive trainings for adults around the world. We learn about how her transformational Rideology workshops are flipping the script on tired old "positions classes and we get real deep on taking a look at who pleasure is REALLY for in the Goody Gang. Enjoy todays discussion with Goody Howard. Listen on all podcast platforms and watch the interview on You Tube @askgoody and www.askgoody.com @theeroticphilos on IG & Twitter @cyndi_darnell on socials

Today's guest is Dr. Tara Suwinyattichaiporn a sex and relationship expert, tenured professor, relationship coach at Luvbites.co, and host of Luvbites by Dr. Tara Podcast with a bustling social media presence on TikTok. From a shy immigrant from Thailand to a confident sexpert, her goal is to normalize talking about sex in a healthy and fun way. In this episode we learn about Dr Tara's research into sexual communication and we explore what makes sex fulfilling no matter the stage of life yo'ure at or what you're into. Dr Tara asks me about my experiences with sexual midfulness and I share more about my own relationship with low libido, the inspiration behind writing my book. A couple steps back from the gravitas of our more recent episodes, this light-hearted discussion with Dr Tara offers a little levity Enjoy today's discussion with Dr Tara Suwinyattichaiporn Watch the interview in full on You Tube And don't forget to leave us a rating and review Find Cyndi's website here 

In this episode we meet Dr. Holly Richmond - a Somatic Psychotherapist, Certified Sex Therapist, and Clinical Board Member for Dame Products. Her newly released book Reclaiming Pleasure: A Sex-Positive Guide for Moving Past Sexual Trauma and Living a Passionate Life (New Harbinger, Oct. 2021) is an innovative look at both somatic and psychological factors in survivors’ erotic recovery. In this interview we look at what it takes to recover from sexual assault, what SA even is, we bust some myths about who this affects and where  /how it happens and how to begin on the road to recovery. A powerful episode. Listen gently. Watch the interview in full on You Tube And don't forget to leave us a rating and review Find Cyndi's website here  Website www.drhollyrichmond.com. Social @drhollyrichmond

In this episode we meet Lola Jean.  A Sex Educator, Fetish Wrestler, ProDomme, and World Record Holder for Volume Squirting (solo). She provides the 'No Frills Sex Education' we both need and deserve. Lola brings a refreshing understanding to sex, sexuality, and kink to invite individuals through what they think they are capable of. In this episode Lola Jean talks to us about her signature squirting demos, but then we take an intimate turn into how LolaJean deals with performance pressure, sexual and emotional anxiety and why vulnerability is a normal part of life we all caln learn from.  Watch the interview in full on You Tube And don't forget to leave us a rating and review Find Cyndi's website here  Website www.drhollyrichmond.com. Social @drhollyrichmond   Lola's Website @lolajeandotcom on social

Dr. Nan Wise is a certified sex therapist, relationship specialist, neuroscience researcher, and author of Why Good Sex Matters: Understanding the Neuroscience of Pleasure for a Smarter, Happier, and More Purpose-Filled Life. Her research has addressed gaps in the literature regarding the neural basis of human sexuality and garnered international attention. Her clinical approach highlights the critical role our evolutionarily wired-in “core” emotions play in physical and mental well-being. Imbalances in these core emotions contribute to anxiety, depression, stress-related disorders, and sexual dysfunction, and anhedonia, or the inability to experience pleasure. This pleasure crisis is evidenced by soaring epidemics of mood disorders, stress-related illnesses, and a widespread sexual recession. Dr. Nan has appeared on  The Today Show and contributed her expert opinion to many media outlets and she writes regularly for Psychology Today and Glamour. In this episode Dr Nan & Cyndi Darnell dig into her research on pleasure and the brain and we explore the relationship between how complex feelings can hijack pleasure - and what we can do to create more pleasure in our lives. You can watch the entire interview on You Tube and leave us a rating and review on Apple podcasts Head to the Erotic Philosopher website  and follow on  Instagram and Twitter Follow Cyndi on Instagram, Facebook , TikTok and Twitter

This week's guest Dr Roger Kuhn is a Poarch Creek Two-Spirit Indigequeer soma-cultural activist, artist, sex therapist, and sexuality educator.  Roger’s work explores the concepts of decolonizing and unsettling sexuality and focuses on the way culture impacts and informs our bodily experiences.   In addition to his work as a licensed psychotherapist, Roger is a faculty lecturer of American Indian Studies at San Francisco State University.  He is a board member of the American Indian Cultural Center of San Francisco, a community organizer of the Bay Area American Indian Two-Spirit powwow, and a member of the LGBTQ+ Advisory Committee of the San Francisco Human Rights Commission.   In 2022, Roger was featured in the Levi’s Pride campaign.  He is currently writing his first book, Soma-Cultural Liberation, which will be published by North Atlantic books in 2024. In this episode we dig into the impact of the body and culture and it's impact ion how we process sensation, emotion and so much more. Roger unpacks some soma cultural narratives in North American life and  offers his knowledge on the impact of soma-cultural liberation in sex, therapy and relationships. Follow him on Instagram  Watch on You Tube  Find Cyndi www.cyndidarnell.com  and on Instagram   and Facebook and Twitter Follow The Erotic Philosopher on Instagram and Twitter 

If you've ever felt conflicted about your relationship to love, romance and even how you love, you're going to enjoy today's guest  Anne Hodder-Shipp an award-winning certified sex and relationship educator dedicated to providing accurate, expansive, and compassionate care. They are the founder and lead educator at Everyone Deserves Sex Ed, a sex ed and professional development organization, and they work with people and couples of almost any age to help build skills, knowledge, and confidence around identity, pleasure, relationships, and communication. Most recently, Anne wrote the groundbreaking expansive love language ebook, Speaking from the Heart: 18 Languages for Modern Love, and its accompanying guide, The Speaking from the Heart Workbook: A Practical Guide to the Modern Love Languages. In this interview Anne and I look at the role of sex education as a community endeavor, not just something that happens at school or for sex therapists, but something that helps us create communities that are meaningful. Then we shift toward unpacking their work critiquing the popuar 5 Love Languages and Anne offers us some powerful reframes and why we need to be a bit more curious about dissecting love languages as they've been fed to us. https://annehoddershipp.com/ https://everyonedeservessexed.com/ https://www.themodernlovelanguages.com/ https://www.s3xplus.com/