In her contribution to our “Sexuality & Gender Studies Now” series, Lori Brotto examines how a person’s psychological-physical connection influences their sexual desire. She explains how, through her research on cervical cancer survivors, mindfulness meditation—a practice that helps the brain focus on the present moment—can help reconnect the body and brain to stimulate sexual desire. Through this approach, Brotto argues, many other people, from cancer survivors to sexual assault victims, can reconnect with their sexual desires.
Lori Brotto
Lori Brotto is a professor of gynecology, executive director of the Women's Health Research Institute, a Canada Research Chair in Women's Sexual Health, and a registered psychologist in British Columbia. Since completing her SRFP-funded postdoctoral fellowship in 2003, she has been on faculty at the University of British Columbia. Her postdoctoral fellowship was the first documented pilot study of mindfulness for women’s sexual concerns, and it paved the way for a 15-year program of research that recently culminated in her book, Better Sex Through Mindfulness: How Women Can Cultivate Desire by Greystone (2018).