Understanding Chemsex with David Stuart

In this episode of The Sexual Wellness Sessions hosted by Psychosexual & Relationship Therapist Kate Moyle, we're talking about Chemsex with a particular focus on the gay, bisexual and men-having-sex-with-men community where chemsex is most common. My guest for this conversation is David Stuart who was the first person to name and identify Chemsex as an emerging gay cultural phenomenon. He's a support worker, public servant and a drug use counsellor, specialising in chems and chemsex. He is incredibly experienced in working with those struggling with chemsex use, and what factors are often involved in starting and maintaining the use chems as a part of someone's sex life.

One of the challenges of chemsex is that people often describe this particular use of drugs, as making them feel less inhibited and experiencing increased pleasure; however the flipside of this is that is can pose challenges for sober sex. In this conversation we unpack some of the cultural and social factors that are contributing to people's challenges with chemsex; and we examine some of the narratives and experiences that can influence someone's relationship to chems.

David Stuart was the first to name and identify Chemsex as an emerging gay cultural phenomenon. He developed the world’s first chemsex support services, and he fought relentlessly for greater chemsex awareness by encouraging and stimulating cultural dialogue and discussion within our international gay, bi and Queer communities. He continues to support international governments and communities to manage the cultural phenomenon from a place of kindness, sex positivity and cultural competence.

https://www.davidstuart.org/

@davidastuart

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@blueheart_app

Kate Moyle is Psychosexual & Relationship Therapist and Certified Psycho-Sexologist, who is passionate about having open and normalising conversations around sex and relationships; and helping people to get to a place of sexual health, happiness and wellbeing.

Follow Kate on Instagram at @KateMoyleTherapy