Transcript - Women Talk Sex and Cancer
The Survivor's Perspective
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Joelle Kaufman (00:03.886)
Cancer steals a lot of things, but one of the most isolating losses, the one that rarely gets discussed, certainly wasn’t discussed in any oncology or integrated cancer office I went to, is what happens to your sex life and your sense of self as a sexual being during and after cancer treatment.
Today I’m doing something new. I’ve brought on three guests that are going to tackle what people don’t talk about, how treatment changes your body, your desire, your relationship with intimacy, and what you can do about it.
These are remarkable women who bring three different perspectives. Rochelle Menzies is a clinical sexologist with a master’s in sexology. She’s also a breast cancer survivor and lived through, she’ll talk about her year-long intimacy gulf between her and her partner. Now she helps others navigate these waters. Kara Lockwood returns to kicking cancer’s ass. She’s a USA Today bestselling romance author. She’s made a career writing about healthy intimacy. She faced her own crisis when dying.
diagnosed with stage one HER2 positive breast cancer in 2023. She went through a double mastectomy chemoreconstruction and wrote about it in her book. There’s no good book for this. Erica Reath is a pharmacologist. She’s a doctor, a PhD in pharmacology and she’s a trauma informed life coach.
She’s also a breast cancer survivor and she helps people move from surviving to living, bridging science of what’s happening in your body with the sole work of reclaiming who you are after cancer changes your life. So if you or someone you love has wondered, will I ever feel like myself again? Will I ever want intimacy again? This episode is for you. Kicking Cancer’s Ass brings you the stories, science and strategies to maximize your power. I’m your host, Joelle Kaufman. Let’s get into it.
Joelle Kaufman (01:55.158)
Rachelle, let’s start with you, with what nobody tells you when you get diagnosed. You spent a year, you said, without sex with your partner and cuddling, you said, got difficult. And Kara, your husband was a big part of how you started to really imagine yourself. And Erica, you understand what’s happening at the cellular level.
So tell me ladies, what did each of you not know about how cancer would change your intimate life? And what do you wish someone had told you the day you were diagnosed?
Joelle Kaufman (02:29.378)
Rochelle?
Richelle Menzies (02:29.722)
Great question Joelle. I guess as a sexologist I kind of understood what was going to happen physically. I’d already been through menopause so I’d had that journey and but I guess it was more the psychological impact that I really really struggled with. I found that I was okay with how my body looked. I had a double mastectomy to flat and I’m now a flat.
