Benefits of Sex Therapy in Hong Kong
- theprocesshk
- Dec 20, 2024
- 7 min read
Updated: Mar 14
Sex therapy is a form of psychological therapy that focuses on issues related to sexuality and intimate relationships. It is intended to help individuals or couples overcome difficulties.
Sex therapy may benefit anyone who wants to improve their relationship with sex and pleasure. It can be especially helpful for those who have difficulty with a lack of arousal, painful intercourse, an inability to reach orgasm, or other sexual dysfunctions. But not only, keep reading ...
Sex therapy does not require both partners. Some people may benefit from individual therapy sessions, while others may find couples sex therapy more useful.
This article discusses who and why someone may need sex therapy, what to expect during therapy, how to find a qualified sex therapist, and more.
What is sex therapy ?
Sex therapy is a type of talk therapy designed to help individuals and couples experiencing issues achieving sexual satisfaction.
Physical, psychological, and emotional factors can all cause sexual challenges. A sex therapist’s goal is to help a person or couple address these issues and obtain a more fulfilling sex life.
Sex therapy in Hong Kong does not involve sexual contact between clients and therapists.
How does it work ?
As with any psychotherapy, sex therapy involves talking through issues.
Generally, the client and sex therapist discuss any experiences, emotions, and concerns that may contribute to the client’s sexual dissatisfaction and challenges. They will also work on coping mechanisms to help them build a more satisfying sex life.
Sex therapists might also give their clients “homework.” This may vary depending on the individual or couple and can include assignments designed to increase sexual education and improve communication between partners. Sex therapists also may assign sexual experimentation and sensate focus homework.
If they suspect a physical concern is behind the sexual challenges, the therapist may refer the client to a medical doctor. In turn, the doctor and therapist may work together to address the physical issue while guiding the client toward reaching their sexual goals.
Benefits
Sex therapy can help both individuals and couples:
gain a realistic understanding of sex and pleasure
identify and address underlying causes of sexual issues
grow and maintain a deeper sexual connection with themselves and their partners
Who needs it ?
Sex therapy can be beneficial for a wide range of individuals and couples facing various issues related to sexual health and relationships. Here are some profiles of people who may seek sex therapy:
1. Individuals Experiencing Sexual Dysfunction:
- Those facing challenges such as erectile dysfunction, premature ejaculation, or vaginismus.
2. Couples with Relationship Issues:
- Couples struggling with intimacy, communication problems, or differing sexual desires.
3. People with Trauma History:
- Individuals who have experienced sexual trauma or abuse and are looking to heal and rebuild their sexual identity.
4. LGBTQ+ Individuals:
- Those navigating sexual orientation, gender identity, or relationship dynamics specific to the LGBTQIA++ community.
5. People with Chronic Illness:
- Individuals whose sexual health is impacted by chronic illnesses or conditions that affect libido or physical ability.
6. Postpartum Individuals:
- New parents experiencing changes in sexual desire or intimacy after childbirth.
7. Older Adults:
- Seniors facing changes in sexual function or intimacy related to aging.
8. Individuals Exploring Sexuality:
- Those looking to understand their sexual preferences, kinks, or desires in a safe space.
9. People Seeking Education:
- Individuals or couples wanting to learn more about sexual health, communication, and techniques for enhancing intimacy.
10. Those Dealing with Addiction:
- Individuals recovering from sexual addiction or compulsive sexual behavior.
Sex therapy can provide a supportive environment to explore these issues and work towards healthier sexual relationships and experiences.
Also, people who experience sexual dysfunction may be among those who could benefit the most from sex therapy.
Simplified, sexual dysfunction is an umbrella term for various recurrent difficulties related to sex and includes:
male hypoactive sexual desire disorder
female orgasmic disorder
female sexual interest/arousal disorder
genito-pelvic pain/penetration disorder
substance/medication-induced sexual dysfunction
other specified sexual dysfunction
unspecified sexual dysfunction
These dysfunctions can cause a lack of interest in sex, low confidence, sexual performance anxiety, painful intercourse, and an inability to become aroused or reach orgasm — seriously impacting a person’s ability to enjoy a healthy and fulfilling sex life.
Sexual dysfunction can have physical or psychological causes. Sometimes, it is associated with a history of abuse.
Sexual trauma
Sexual trauma can particularly interfere with a person’s interest in or ability to enjoy intimacy and sex.
Research suggests that sex therapy may help people with a history of sexual trauma. For example, RITMO (derived from EMDR) trauma-based therapy with sex-positive techniques may be more effective in helping someone work through their trauma-related sexual dysfunction than using trauma-based therapy aloneTrusted Source. These studies are small but promising.
However, as some researchers note, some people with a sexual trauma history may need individual therapy to work through other issues before they are ready to explore sexual desire and satisfaction in sex therapy.
What to expect from Intimacy Counseling and
Benefits of Sex Therapy in Hong Kong
Discussing someone’s sex life with a stranger may feel uncomfortable. It is likely the therapist anticipates this and will begin with simple getting-to-know-you questions.
People can expect to discuss their:
health
sex education
sexual background
beliefs and ideas about sex
specific challenges with sex
The sex therapist will work with the individual or couple on their specific concerns and challenges through talk therapy. The frequency and length of therapy sessions will depend on the client and challenges and needs.
Some common concerns that are typically addressed through sex therapy include:
Mismatched sexual desires, drives or libido
Sexual exploration and intimacy development
Erectile dysfunction, premature ejaculation and delayed ejaculation
Inability to achieve orgasm
Painful intercourse
BDSM/kink literacy and exploration
Non-conforming relationships
Sexual education
Emotional disconnection
The sex therapist will not:
choose sides or attempt to convince anyone to do anything
undress or ask anyone to undress
have sexual relations or instruct sexual relations
Note that sex therapists, as with all therapists, are not one-size-fits-all. Compatibility is important for successful treatment. If someone does not feel comfortable with their therapist, they may wish to consider another expert.
What happens in sex therapy?
Sex therapists can draw from any number of therapy techniques (modalities) to address sexuality-based concerns. These could include Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT), or sensory approaches like Sensate Focus.
Sensate Focus is grounded in mutual responsibility from each partner, communication, and intimacy and touching exercises—without expectation for sex.
Regardless of the approach, a lot of the work in sex therapy is based on unpacking narratives and belief systems (such as religious-based shame and guilt). You can also expect homework exercises to work toward achieving your specific goals.
It’s likely you’ll take a staged approach to this work. Most sex therapy is based on something called the PLISSIT model. It’s a framework for sex therapy and counseling with four levels.
In each session, you move downward through these stages.
The stages are led by your therapist, and most people see significant movements within the first three levels.
Permission (P): your therapist will identify key areas to address and ensure they have permission to have these discussions with you.
Limited Information (LI): your therapist will provide some details around body or sexual functioning, solutions, methods or exercises to build your knowledge.
Specific Suggestions (SS): based on the above information, your therapist will provide you with specific solutions or exercises to put into practice.
Intensive Therapy (IT): this could be a referral to another professional for a more specific or specialized issue, or guidance for couples or individual counselling to work on deeper underlying concerns.
PLISSIT is a type of solutions-focused therapy or Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT), a brief, goal-oriented type of therapy. You might encounter solutions-focused therapy in other mental health areas as well.
When looking for a sex therapist, you want to make sure this is someone you and your partner(s) trust and have a healthy relationship with. These are intimate conversations, but a sex therapist should never have physical contact with you or your partner(s). Sex therapy is like any other area of counselling—the specialization is in human sexuality, as other counsellors might specialize in anxiety, depression or addiction.
When looking for a sex therapist (or any therapist), you want to assess therapist fit by making sure they are licensed or certified in your area, that you are able to afford the sessions or that you have workplace coverage, and that you can attend your sessions in person or online.
Couples sex therapy
Couples sex therapy is when both sexual partners attend therapy sessions.
For some people, attending sex therapy sessions alone is sufficient. For others, having both partners present is more beneficial for building stronger communication and improving satisfaction.
In some cases, the therapist may be able to help a couple determine whether individual sessions, couples sessions, or a mix of both would be the most favorable.
Summary
Sex therapy aims to provide a comfortable, encouraging atmosphere for people to safely talk through their challenges at obtaining a healthy and fulfilling sex life or get answers to their questions.
Anyone can benefit from sex therapy — especially people experiencing sexual challenges and dissatisfaction with their sex lives.
Some people benefit from individual sex therapy sessions while others find couples sex therapy more useful.
I use a variety of approaches, including cognitive behavioral therapy, couples therapy, and other psychological methods to help clients improve their sexual and relational well-being.
Are you still looking for a sex therapist or a couple counsellor in Hong Kong?
Benefits of sex therapy in Hong Kong.
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