American culture is more sexually liberal than ever. But compared to men, women's sexual pleasure has not grown: Up to 40 percent of American women experience the sexual malaise clinically known as low sexual desire. Between this low desire, muted pleasure, and experiencing sex in terms of labor rather than of lust, women by the millions are dissatisfied with their erotic lives. For too long, this deficit has been explained in terms of women's biology, stress, and age. In The Pleasure Gap, Katherine Rowland rejects the idea that women should settle for diminished pleasure; instead, she argues women should take inequality in the bedroom as seriously as we take it in the workplace and understand its causes and effects. Drawing on extensive research and interviews with more than one hundred women and dozens of sexual health professionals, Rowland shows that the pleasure gap is neither medical malady nor psychological condition but rather a result of our culture's troubled relationship with women's sexual expression. This provocative exploration of modern sexuality makes a case for closing the gap for good.

For the 20 million people who suffer from pelvic pain: the completely revised and updated guide for making sex feel good again. Pelvic pain can lead to embarrassment, silence, and misdiagnosis. It can hurt your relationship as well as your sense of self. Tackling the stereotypes, myths, and realities of pelvic pain, this easy‑to‑understand, accessible guide will help readers get the help they need and deserve, offering key information on: The most urgent questions about the causes of pelvic pain The more than twenty causes of pelvic pain How to find the right doctor The relationship between pelvic sex and genetics The newest in treatment for pelvic pain and pelvic pain indications How psychological factors can contribute to and reduce pelvic pain Featuring groundbreaking research and stories from people who've lived it, When Sex Hurts provides the tools you need to stop hurting and start healing.

An unparalleled exploration of the mysteries underlying women's sexuality that rivals the culture-shifting Kinsey Report, from two of America's leading research psychologists Do women have sex simply to reproduce or display their affection? When University of Texas at Austin clinical psychologist Cindy M. Meston and evolutionary psychologist David M. Buss joined forces to investigate the underlying sexual motivations of women, what they found astonished them. Through the voices of real women, Meston and Buss reveal the motivations that guide women's sexual decisions and explain the deep-seated psychology and biology that often unwittingly drive women's desires—sometimes in pursuit of health or pleasure, or sometimes for darker, disturbing reasons that a woman may not fully recognize. Drawing on more than a thousand intensive interviews conducted solely for the book, as well as their pioneering research on physiological response and evolutionary emotions, Why Women Have Sex uncovers an amazingly complex and nuanced portrait of female sexuality. They delve into the use of sex as a defensive tactic against a mate's infidelity (protection), as a ploy to boost self-confidence (status), as a barter for gifts or household chores (resource acquisition), or as a cure for a migraine headache (medication). Why Women Have Sex stands as the richest and deepest psychological understanding of female sexuality yet achieved and promises to inform every woman's (and her partner's) awareness of her relationship to sex and her sexuality.

Wonderful sex does more than melt both body and soul; it brings power, energy, and deep satisfaction to all aspects of our lives. In this unique book, women who consider themselves highly sexually responsive talk in intimate detail about what gives them the greatest pleasure. They redefine sex—based on how women really experience sexual pleasure—confirming what every woman knows instinctively, while creating a new language that every woman will understand. Based on extensive one-on-one interviews conducted by Dr. Ogden with hundreds of women, this thought-provoking, wise, and unprecedented book transforms how we view sex by giving us new ways to think about sexual pleasure. To learn more about the author, Gina Ogden, go to www.ginaogden.com.

True stories from some of the world's most pro-sex feminists. These women have provided intimate, anti-censorship essays, to reestablish the idea that equality of the sexes doesn't have to mean no sex. From intimate sexual experiences and physical perception through to the academic arena, this ground-breaking volume documents women's POSITIVE thoughts, uses, and desires for, with, and about pornography. Essays include such diverse topics as how the authors discovered porn, what it means to a blind and deaf woman, running a sex magazine, starting a sex shop, and what the contributors would actually LIKE to see. Compiled by Feminists Against Censorship, Tales From The Clit is erotically and intellectually arousing. Contributors include: Deborah Ryder, Jan Grossman, Sue Raye, Linzi Drew, Annie Sprinkle, Tuppy Owens, Lucy Williams, Nettie Pollard, Avedon Carol, Scarlet Harlot, and Caroline Bottomley.

Moving beyond a traditional focus on sexual functioning, this book emphasizes the complex interaction of psychological, social, cultural and biological influences on womens's sense of themselves as sexual beings. Written for practitioners and educators, its goal is to challenge contradictory messages and meanings that cause many women to feel disconnected from their bodies and from their needs and desires. Themes explored include the development of sexual awareness and sexuality in childhood and adolescence, the critical sexual choices of young adulthood, and the multiple transitions characterizing the middle and later years of life. The book features creative exercises and interventions to help girls and women construct more affirming sexual meanings.