Celebrating Women's Sexuality in Mid-and Late Life

A common misconception in our youth-obsessed culture is that when women reach 50 and beyond they lose interest in or cannot enjoy intimate physical relationships, and are more or less sexually “dead.”  Many older women in our society who had little or no sex education in school are especially inclined to believe this fiction.  The cultural taboo on talking openly about sex, combined with lack of sex education, left them ignorant of the sexual behaviors of their peers as well as self-conscious and often even ashamed of their own sexual needs and concerns.  Not only were they taught that “nice girls don’t,” they were also taught that “nice girls don’t even talk about it.”

In this series of four evenings of informal conversation and learning for women 50 or over, in a supportive, strictly confidential environment, we will explore the themes of sexuality and new opportunities for celebrating it as we age, as well as the many benefits of maintaining sexual health in mid-life.  

The first session (Tuesday) will serve as a general introduction and will focus on the rich opportunities at this time in our lives for redefining what it means to be sexual as we age.  We will sit in Circle and let our voices and hearts join together to understand what we wish to learn; we will then tailor the topics of the remaining three sessions to our needs and interests. 

In the three subsequent Wednesday evening sessions, educational materials will be provided and there will be time for Q & A.   Each session will include open-ended conversation.  However, no one will be required to share personal information unless she wishes.  Possible topics to explore might include: the importance of women’s wisdom in reframing perceptions of sexuality in midlife and beyond, women’s spiritual as well as physical needs for pleasure at this stage of life, menopause and related medical concerns, self-pleasure as a form of meditation, health benefits and risks of sexual activity for older women, and the anatomy of pleasure. 

Pre-registration required.  Maximum enrollment: 9

Tuesday, November 8, 7:00-9:15 p.m. - Tuesday can be taken separtely to test the waters.   
Three Wednesdays, November 16, 30, and December 7, 

Anita Hoffer, Ph.D., Ed.D. worked at Harvard Medical School for over twenty-five years, where she served as an Associate Professor and Director of Research in Urology at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital. She subsequently worked in the bio-pharmaceutical industry on women’s health projects and worked as a consultant to hospitals and biomedical companies engaged in clinical trials and technology transfer. Anita is a sexuality educator, lecturer and researcher who leads workshops that address older women’s sexual concerns and sexual literacy; she teaches health care providers about the special needs of this population; she educates lay audiences on female sexuality and aging; and she does sexual coaching. Her degrees are in reproductive biology, sexology and sexuality education. Her work is based on her belief that healthy sexuality is a life force and an important component of every human being’s personality and well-being throughout the life cycle. She is a Planned Parenthood volunteer and a member of the American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors and Therapists (AASECT), the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality (SSSS), the Society for Sex Therapy and Research (SSTAR) and the Association of Reproductive Health Professionals (ARHP); she is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Consortium on Sexuality and Aging at Widener University.