Are you familiar with the languages of love? Jess chats with Jeff and Carolyn this morning on Global TV's The Morning Show about love languages and how they can teach you to better understand your partner's needs. Check out her notes and video interview below.

What are the languages of love?

Gary Chapman’s bestseller, The 5 Love Languages, suggests that each of us has a primary love language — words of affirmation, receiving gifts, acts of service, quality time or physical touch — and that in order to improve emotional connection, we need to learn to speak our partner’s language.

Of course, you can speak multiple languages and other “languages” exist, but this 5-pronged framework can be very helpful to help you better understand your own needs and your partner’s.

• Acts of service - performing favours that make them feel loved, appreciated, seen and special.
• Words of affirmation - expressing your love in words in a variety of ways (via text,...

Feature image is ‘where two are gathered’ by Lori Klassen.

In the first of a two-part series, Healthy Manhood speaker and writer Jeff Perera shares with fellow cis-hetero guys some takeaways from navigating COVID-19 to help us better navigate our interactions with people of other genders.

Take a wild guess which three-word phrase makes up the first words in a series of questions I’ve been asked more in 2020: The Year of Coronavirus than any year before. Think about it for a minute, we’ll come back to it in a bit.

Speaking of questions and the pandemic: Amidst the ‘false infodemic’ spread of misinformation and disinformation, we all have questions about what tomorrow holds for us all. Over this challenging year we’ve adapted and changed our approach to everyday routines and interactions. Some of us are also finding lessons and takeaways around how we interact with one another. One powerful takeaway came for many of us who experienced...

• How to deal with feelings of rejection.
• What’s the real difference between truth and honesty.
• What to do when you or your lover lose their erection.
• Managing feelings related to weight gain and why more weight can mean more pleasure!
• How to get over fears of initiating sex.
• How to feel worthy of love, sex and pleasure without the pressure to “do more” in bed.

Follow Dr. Lexx on Instagram, Twitter & Facebook.

This podcast is brought to you by Cliovana. 

Author and Astrologist Mecca Woods joins Jess and Brandon to weigh-in on whether or not you should consider your Zodiac sign in dating, and shares her insights on:

• The relational and sexual strengths of each Zodiac sign
• How air, earth, water and fire signs differ from one another
• How we can benefit from embracing elements from all Astrological signs
• The areas you may want to work on according to your Zodiac sign
• How Astrology can support self-development
• Astrology as a motivational tool as opposed to a destiny-focused blueprint

Follow Mecca on Instagram, Twitter & Facebook. Also, check out her podcast: Stars On Fire

This podcast is brought to you by Cliovana. 

If you’ve got questions or topic suggestions for the podcast, submit them here. As well, you can now record your messages for us! Please record your message/question in a quiet room and use your phone’s headphones with a built-in mic if possible.

And be sure to subscribe on Apple Podcasts...

Dr. Uchenna “UC” Ossai is a sex-positive pelvic health physical therapist and sexuality educator. She joins Jess & Brandon to discuss all things sex, pleasure, wellness and bourbon!

• How can pleasure mapping improve sexual communication and pleasure?
• How do you deal with a hypersensitive clitoris?
• How do you assess pelvic pain and endometriosis?
• How can therapists and other helping professionals take care of their own physical and mental health?
• What is vaginal stretching?
• How can we assess racism and oppression in healthcare?
• What are Bourbon Talez and what can you learn from them?

Follow Uchenna on Instagram, Facebook & Twitter.

This podcast is brought to you by Cliovana. 

If you’ve got questions or topic suggestions for the podcast, submit them here. As well, you can now record your messages for us! Please record your message/question in a quiet room and use your phone’s headphones with a built-in mic if possible.

And be sure to...

With a very busy and hectic schedule, it's important to schedule some "me" time for yourself. I chat with Jeff McArthur & Carolyn Mackenzie about this on Global TV's The Morning Show. Check out my notes and video interview below!

We’re stuck in the house all day and never get a break. How do I tell my partner that I need more time apart?

1. Be specific about your needs. General statements without context (e.g. I need more space!) might not be as effective as more specific expressions (e.g. I’d like to carve out more time for myself so that I can workout more often and reconnect with some of my friends with whom I’ve lost touch.)

2. Explain why you’d like to make the specific change. You don’t owe your partner an explanation for every desire and feeling, but clarifying your why can help them to better understand your needs. I miss going out with Sally, so we’re going to have drinks and dinner after work on Thursday. I always feel so energized...

We’re joined by pelvic health physiotherapist, Michiko Caringal, who answers all of our questions about how the pelvic floor affects sexual health including:

• Why might ejaculation be painful?
• How do you address delayed ejaculation?
• Why do penises require pelvic floor therapy?
• Can my vagina fall out?
• Why is pelvic floor therapy important for cis and trans folks alike?
• What does a pelvic floor consultation look like?
• Who might benefit from a rectal exam?
• How can we improve patient experience to ensure more active vs. passive care?
• How do you clean your vulva and vagina?
• What does it mean to “release the tailbone”?
• How is back pain related to pelvic health and how can posture affect pelvic floor health?

Follow Michiko on Instagram & Facebook.

This podcast is brought to you by Cliovana. 

If you’ve got questions or topic suggestions for the podcast, submit them here. As well, you can now record your messages for us! Please record your...

I was recently interviewed about how to talk to your partner about getting tested and I’ve shared the Q&A below.

If you haven’t been tested, you don’t know if you have an STI. In many cases, STIs (e.g. chlamydia) are asymptomatic, so the most common symptom can be no symptom at all. Regular testing, therefore, is essential to safer sex practices and long term health; though an STI may be asymptomatic for some time, untreated, it can lead to health issues including pelvic inflammatory disease, reactive arthritis, ectopic pregnancy, and infertility.

1. If someone is going home with someone they met at a bar, party or some other social engagement, how might they instigate the “have you been tested” question?

The stigma that surrounds STIs is one of the greatest barriers to safer sex, as it inhibits testing and talking about our statuses. Many people avoid the conversation, as they feel embarrassed, but if you’re willing to strip down and get...

Feature image from VICE's The Gender Spectrum Collection. 

Have you moved back in with your parents since the pandemic? I'm joining forces again with Kelley Keehn and we share our thoughts and insights about this with Carolyn from Global TV's The Morning Show. Check out my notes and video interview below!

We often think about ways for couples to express love and invest in their relationships, but parents and children can do the same. If you’re a young person living with your parents, get to know their love language and show them some love. You’re living in their home and you can give back without spending a cent. Make their favourite lunch as an act of service. Ask them to watch a film to spend quality time. Write them a thank you note to offer words of affirmation. Give them a warm hug when they’re stressed out as physical affection. And add something to their home as a gift.

Communication is, of course, key to all relationships, so if you’re living...

OBGYN Dr. Nicole E. Williams joins us to answer listener questions, discuss sexual wellness and weigh in on how to:

• Have sex on your period (if you want to)
• Manage heavy bleeding due to fibroids
• Get in the mood post-hysterectomy
• Find your clitoral legs!
• Deal with burning post-orgasm
• Consider options other than a hysterectomy
• Explore more frequent and intense orgasms with Cliovana & other approaches

Follow Dr. Williams on Instagram & Facebook.

This podcast is brought to you by Cliovana. 

If you’ve got questions or topic suggestions for the podcast, submit them here. As well, you can now record your messages for us! Please record your message/question in a quiet room and use your phone’s headphones with a built-in mic if possible.

And be sure to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Podbean, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music & Stitcher!

Rough Transcript:

This is a computer-generated rough transcript, so please excuse any...