[ENCORE] Your Body Deserves Pleasure Too: Vanessa Marin on Desire, Shame, and Reclaiming Intimacy

About this sermon

If any conversation belongs squarely in our The Body Knows: Midlife In Our Skin series, it’s this one. Because pleasure is a body conversation. Desire is a body conversation. And if midlife has shifted how you feel in your own skin—this episode meets you right there. Today we’re revisiting our conversation with Vanessa Marin, licensed psychotherapist, sex therapist, and co-author of Sex Talks. For over two decades, Vanessa has helped people untangle shame, rebuild connection, and create sex lives that actually feel good—not performative, not pressured, but honest and alive. This isn’t a conversation about “fixing” your sex life. It’s about understanding it. It’s about giving yourself permission to be curious again. And maybe, for the first time in a long time, letting your body have a voice in the conversation. Whether you’re partnered or solo, whether intimacy feels complicated or just quietly absent—this one is for you. What You’ll Learn: ● Where our shame around sex actually comes from—and why it’s so hard to shake ● The difference between spontaneous and responsive desire (and why it matters more than you think) ● The myth about the female orgasm most of us were never taught ● Why “having sex like a man” might be surprisingly freeing ● The non-sexual habits that can radically improve your sex life ● How mental load and stress impact desire in midlife Notable Quotes: ● “There should be joy with this act. There should be connection and intimacy.” – Vanessa Marin ● “I’m not immune to the water that we’ve all been swimming in.” – Vanessa Marin ● “We are all struggling with our sex lives, with our bodies, in one way or another.” – Vanessa Marin ● “When your brain is constantly running, it’s hard to make space for desire.” – Vanessa Marin Tags: midlife, women’s health, sexuality, intimacy, relationships, desire, marriage, mental load, body image, shame, personal growth, communication, Vanessa Marin, Jen Hatmaker, For the Love Podcast Resources Mentioned in This Episode: ➢ Sex Talks: The Five Conversations That Will Transform Your Love Life by Vanessa Marin and Xander Marin - https://amzn.to/43VSwnS ➢ The Sex Talks Card Deck and Guidebook: 90 Prompts to Deepen Connection and Spark Intimacy - https://amzn.to/3Hys1xa ➢ Vanessa and Xander’s Deeper Monthly Membership - https://buy.vmtherapy.com/deeper Guest’s Links: Website - https://vmtherapy.com/about Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/vanessaandxander/ Twitter - https://x.com/VMTherapy Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/vanessaandxander/ Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/vanessamarin TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@vanessaandxander Pinterest - https://www.pinterest.com/vanessaandxander/_created/ Podcast - https://vmtherapy.com/podcast/ Connect with Jen! Jen’s Website - https://jenhatmaker.com/ Jen’s Instagram - https://instagram.com/jenhatmaker Jen’s Twitter - https://twitter.com/jenHatmaker/ Jen’s Facebook - https://facebook.com/jenhatmaker Jen’s YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/user/JenHatmaker The For the Love Podcast is presented by Audacy.

Topics

• Forgiveness