“The power of love to change bodies is legendary, built into folklore, common sense, and everyday experience. Love moves the flesh, it pushes matter around… Throughout history, “tender loving care” has uniformly been recognized as a valuable element in healing.“ ~Larry Dossey

Does mental health enhance sexual wellness? Does sexual wellness enhance mental health? Yes and yes. Creating your own equation to find where the two meet and enhance each other is what I call the dance of intimacy. Feeling desirable to yourself defines the beginning of libido and our curiosity about our sexuality. Not having this experience is a primary early death of passion in many a relationship.

Learning and practicing methods of calm, peace or acceptance about the moment I am in helps my demeanor, which in turn helps my relationships. Mostly it helps my relationship to myself, which makes me feel more desirable in life. In this sense, working towards mental health is definitely creating an opening to sexual wellness in my life.

Then after engaging in some mind altering sexual health activities, orgasm being the word that generally defines this action, I wonder if I am able to be mentally well without it. Multidisciplinary studies all confirm the strong link between a vibrant and passionate physical relationship and a general sense of well being, healthy immune system and even greater longevity.

One could argue for either side, that being emotionally stable and sound would beget healthier sexual relations and that great sex makes you more emotionally and mentally well. It is a classic chicken and egg question- they are both true and more true together than either of them without the other. I feel fortunate and know that I am more positive because of my practices that promote mental health and the access to sexual health this affords me.