Is Yoga a Tool for Sex Education?
By Courtney Avery
My name is Courtney Avery. I have a Masters of Public Health, am a yoga teacher, and a birth doula. I am passionate about empowering people through health education.
I believe the more you know and understand your body, the better decisions you’ll be able to make to improve your overall health and wellbeing. I learned the conventional way to educate people about sex and disease prevention, which is very important. However, I found that many sexual health education models can be intimidating and fear-provoking, or encourage you to disconnect from the experience of pleasure. Think of the sex ed scene in the movie “Mean Girls,” where the teacher says, “You will get pregnant and die!” Unfortunately, this is similar to many people’s first experience of learning about sex.
So then I learned how to teach people yoga, which essentially guides people into feeling more while mentally analyzing less, and I began to incorporate yoga into sexual health education. When you can feel the difference in your body, you’ll want to incorporate these things into your life that will improve your health. When you are encouraged to feel deeper into your body, and you know the solid facts behind your physical anatomy, you’ll be able to experience more pleasure in every aspect of your life. I truly believe in sex-positive education that encourages you to explore your capacity of pleasure mentally, physically, and emotionally. Why choose evidence-based sexual health education or a holistic approach to feeling your body, when both are powerful tools for sexploration?! This is why I created Intimate Health Yoga.
Masculine and feminine energy can be thought of as yin and yang energy.
Feminine=Yin.
Masculine=Yang.
I love discussing this topic because, in Tantric philosophy, there’s this idea of accepting everything exactly as it is… there is no need to label something good or bad– there just is.
Yin and Yang energy exists within each of us, and it has nothing to do with your gender or your genitals. Sometimes you feel more in your yang energy– feeling more dominant, assertive, focused, strong. Sometimes you feel more in your yin energy– feeling more soft, receptive, nurturing, tender. When we come together with someone in an intimate setting, these energies dance within our own bodies and between the other person’s energy, to create a beautiful sensual experience of feeling, breathing, and being fully in the experience of allowing the energy to flow.
We must remember that our yin and yang energies are constantly fluctuating and changing as we move through our lives. This directly impacts our sexuality and our desires. Sometimes you may want to be more in your yang space when you connect with your partner. Sometimes you’ll want to be more in your yin space. The better you know how your energy is feeling at every moment, the more you’ll be able to communicate what you need and desire to improve your sexual response cycle and experience more pleasure.
When you want to connect to your yang energy and build feel heat and fire, you can try breath of fire, practice a strong yoga flow, or even yell and express yourself through a powerful dance. When you want to soften into your yin energy and soften and relax your body and mind– you can try a cooling breath practice such as Sa Ta Na Ma breathing, practice a restorative yoga practice with long holds, or let out some sighs of relief with your exhales while taking naps, drinking tea, and journaling.
The moon also plays a role in our energies. The New Moon is the darkest point in the lunar month, driving you to look in and reflect, journal, nap, rest, recharge, and set intentions for the month ahead. The New Moon is known to make your energies more subtle, slow, and inward. I love to use the moon to guide my yoga and meditation practice. This is a beautiful time to connect with your yin energy and give yourself permission to soften and relax. This is especially important when we live in a male-dominated society that tells us to “go, go, go” without rest. Giving yourself permission to pause can do wonders for your body! This is the time for relaxing and restorative yoga, gentle stretching, lots of meditation, and slow, sexual healing practices.
The Full Moon is the brightest point in the lunar month, shining the light on everything around you. A Full Moon is known to make your energies more expressive, strong, and outward. The Full Moon is your opportunity to get out there and express your wildest and truest self! The moon is bright, and it lights up your world into the wee hours of the night, so you can connect with other people, dance, celebrate, and be seen exactly as you are. This is your chance to let the wild, untamed version of yourself come out to play, without judgment, without holding back or playing small. This is when your intentions from the New Moon are actualized and you are living out your goals and dreams. This is the time for stronger physical yoga practice, powerful breathwork, and exploring your sexual fantasies.
The Summer Solstice is the longest day of the year in the Northern hemisphere when the sun takes its longest path from sunrise to sunset. With all this daylight, we are called to honor and celebrate the light. The light within each of us, and the light all around us. This is when we are active, positive, and able to try new things.
Remember, there is no wrong or right, there just is, so play with your own personal energies, see how you feel, and do what feels right in your own body.
Namaste
Courtney Avery is the founder of Intimate Health Yoga. Learn more about her work and how she can support you at intimatehealthyoga.com
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