This is Part 2 of a 6-part series on erectile dysfunction. This week, we're exploring the mechanics of erection.

Many penis owners do not know how their body works below the belt. Not because they're uninformed, but because nobody ever taught them. So when erection challenges arise with no obvious explanation, it's easy to assume you're just broken.

In this episode, Stacey breaks down how erections work and what interferes with the process—psychological, physical, and everything in between.

In this episode:

• The physiology of erections (and why it's not as simple as it seems)

• The connection between psychological and physical ED

• What can interfere: cardiovascular issues, medications, nervous system, pelvic floor, and conditioning

Understanding the mechanics isn't a fix, but it gives context. Because it's easier to work with things you understand.

Next week: Part 3. How to talk about ED with your partner.

Resources + References:

https://youtu.be/52vH6gDUVI8?si=4sXtUCB5O9PrjC9R

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/body/22000-pudendal-nerve

https://www.webmd.com/men/what-is-corpora-cavernosa

https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/tunica-albuginea

💌 Subscribe to the Sex IRL Substack: https://www.sexinreallife.com/

📖 How Do I Tell Them I Have Herpes? A guide to having "the talk" without losing your cool (or your dignity). https://staceyherrera.com/herpesbook

📖 How to Give Amazing Head: 10 Easy Tips to Blow His Mind
https://staceyherrera.com/how-to-give-amazing-head/

This is Part 1 of a 6-part series on erectile dysfunction. Not the mechanics or the fixes —we'll get to that later. This episode is about the part nobody talks about… the emotional weight.

In this episode, Stacey explores what it feels like to live in a body that's changed. The heartbreak and the inconvenience. The way masculinity gets hitched to erections.

In this episode:

• The pressure to maintain an erection

• 3 ED archetypes: pretenders, withdrawals, and searchers

• Why ED feels lonely despite billions of targeted ads

• How shame keeps men from speaking up

Resources + References:

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5503428/

https://academic.oup.com/jsm/article-abstract/21/4/296/7614307

💌 Subscribe to the Sex IRL Substack: https://www.sexinreallife.com/

📖 How Do I Tell Them I Have Herpes? A guide to having "the talk" without losing your cool (or your dignity). https://staceyherrera.com/herpesbook

📖 How to Give Amazing Head: 10 Easy Tips to Blow His Mind
https://staceyherrera.com/how-to-give-amazing-head/

In this episode, Stacey explores the rejection stories we tell ourselves and how they affect our sex lives.

She shares a story about a boundary violation that turned cruel and breaks down why we make every 'no' about our worth. How do we separate someone's no from our self-worth? And how fear of rejection gets in the way of leaning in.

💌 Subscribe to the Sex IRL Substack: https://www.sexinreallife.com/

📖 How Do I Tell Them I Have Herpes? A guide to having "the talk" without losing your cool (or your dignity). https://staceyherrera.com/herpesbook

📖 How to Give Amazing Head: 10 Easy Tips to Blow His Mind
https://staceyherrera.com/how-to-give-amazing-head/