May 5, 2025 • 19 mins
In this episode, I would like to introduce myself and explain how I got where I am in both my career and my journey in sexual health. Join me as I discuss my background, experience and what inspired me to specialize in female sexual dysfunction.
If you want to learn more about sexual health, sexual dysfunction, or how to improve your sex life, follow me on Instagram at @thepgspot or check out my website at doctorpattyj.com for blogs and resources related to sex positivity and real talk about sexuality. As as always, stay curious, stay empowered, and stay you.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Patty (00:08):
Welcome to the PG spot, where our goal is to take the X
out of sex by breaking down thebarriers that prevent open
communication about sexualhealth.
I'm Dr.
Patty Jalomo.
A dual certified nursepractitioner, pelvic floor
therapist, and certified sexualcounselor.
I'm here to provide expertinsights, debunk myths, and
empower you to embrace yoursexual wellbeing.
(00:29):
Whether you're looking foranswers or simply curious, join
us as we open up theconversation around sex,
intimacy and everything inbetween.
I want to take this opportunityto acknowledge that some content
may not be appropriate for alllisteners.
I'm a huge proponent of honestand accurate information
regarding sexuality, but I'malso mindful that this should be
(00:50):
age appropriate.
Therefore, if you are under 18,this may not be the podcast for
you.
Additionally, some of thelanguage used in this podcast.
Maybe offensive to somelisteners, please take these
things into consideration beforegoing forward with your
consensual participation in thispodcast.
The opinions expressed by myselfor my guests are just that.
(01:12):
And these opinions are neitherexpected or required to be
shared by all listeners.
The information that is providedis for educational and
entertainment purposes only, andshould not be mistaken for
individual medical advice if youdo find the information that we
cover in the PG spot.
Helpful.
Interesting or informative.
Please rate and review thepodcast wherever you're
(01:33):
listening from.
If you think this information isimportant, I would love for you
to share it with your friends orfamily.
This is a great way to get theinformation out to more people.
So thank you for listening andlet's get on with the show.
In this first episode, I reallyjust want to introduce myself,
share some background, andexplain what inspired me to
(01:54):
specialize in sexual health.
It's definitely not where Ithought I'd be 30 years ago when
I started my nursing career.
I started off as an associate'sdegree nurse and worked as an RN
in labor and delivery, and thenlater worked in an OB GYN
office.
Um, I really loved working inthe clinic setting, and I was
there for 16 years.
Overall, I started out in anursing role, but after about 10
(02:16):
years, I had the opportunity tolearn something new, which
really changed the trajectory ofmy career.
We had a pelvic floor physicaltherapist who started practicing
at our clinic, and for those ofyou who don't know what a pelvic
floor physical therapist is orwhat they do, it's basically a
provider who specializes inpelvic muscle dysfunction.
(02:37):
Now, most often these arephysical therapists because the
scope of practice for physicaltherapists is basically working
with patients, um, muscles,ligaments, how that works
together for proper functioningoverall in the body.
Um, sometimes muscles are tootight.
Other times muscles may be tooloose or too weak, so a physical
(02:58):
therapist can help withrehabilitation after surgeries
or injuries.
That's a lot of what a physicaltherapist might do.
Now, a pelvic floor physicaltherapist is specialized even
further.
A pelvic floor physicaltherapist works with patients
either to strengthen the musclesin the pelvic floor to treat
conditions like urinaryincontinence, pelvic organ
(03:19):
prolapse, fecal incontinence,that type of thing, or to help
those muscles to relax.
So there are situations wheresomeone may have too much
tension in the pelvic floor.
And this is known as hypertonicpelvic floor muscles, and that
can lead to pain, nervecompression.
It really plays a large role insexual dysfunction.
(03:40):
Oftentimes these patients haveissues with painful intercourse.
There's a condition calledvaginismus, and that's where the
muscles are literally so tightthat you can't, um.
Patients can't have any kind ofvaginal penetration at all, so
you can't get a finger in atampon, anything like that.
So really for these patients,the focus is to learn how to
(04:01):
relax or down train the musclesand lengthen the muscles to
allow for better blood flow.
Eliminate any kind of nervecompression.
So in a nutshell, that's kind ofwhat a pelvic floor physical
therapist does or a pelvic floortherapist.
Obviously it's much more complexthan that.
But that just gives a generalidea of what, pelvic floor
therapy is.
(04:21):
So we had the opportunity inthat office to have a wonderful
pelvic floor physical therapist.
She started the program in ourclinic and was able to treat
patients there.
It was really, I think,beneficial for patients to be
able to.
Come to a place where they'realready comfortable.
And it was just a good servicethat we were able to offer our
(04:42):
patients.
She did a really great job, um,after several years, I'm not
sure how many years she wasactually there, but her husband
ended up being transferred, soshe was going to be moving out
of state.
At that time, you know, and thiswas nearly 20 years ago, there
weren't a lot of physicaltherapists that were
specifically trained in pelvicmuscle dysfunction or pelvic
(05:03):
floor therapy.
So basically as an rn I was ableto learn how to do pelvic floor
therapy from her.
So, you know, she taught me somuch before she left, but then
as an RN doing this.
Not a physical therapist.
I really felt like I needed moretraining, uh, taking more
courses, really just to validatethat I knew what I was doing
(05:24):
with pelvic floor therapy.
So I started taking all thecourses that I could.
Herman and Wallace is a largeprovider of education for people
interested in learning moreabout pelvic muscle dysfunction.
So they provide a lot ofeducational courses for physical
therapists, occupationaltherapists, physicians, nurse
practitioners.
(05:45):
PAs, RNs, really anybody whowants to specialize in pelvic
muscle dysfunction has probablygone through some of Herman and
Wallace courses.
So that's what I did to startwith.
I just started taking basicpelvic floor courses, learning
about the musculature, learningdifferent techniques, learning
how to determine if a muscle wastoo tight, if we needed to work
on strengthening.
(06:06):
So through Herman and Wallace, Iwas able to take a lot of
different courses related topelvic muscle dysfunction.
I took some courses in boweldysfunction.
I learned some manualtechniques, took some courses in
manual techniques, things likemyofascial release, visceral
mobilization.
I even took a course in yoga forpelvic pain.
So a lot of different courseswere offered by Herman and
(06:27):
Wallace, and I just felt likewhen I would take a course, then
I just realized that there wasso much that I still didn't
know.
So I really just wanted to takeevery opportunity that I could
to learn as much as I couldabout pelvic floor therapy and
pelvic muscle dysfunction.
So that took a while, you know,over the course of years when I
(06:48):
was doing pelvic floor therapyin the office, taking these
additional courses, I ended up.
Becoming board certified as abiofeedback therapist in pelvic
muscle dysfunction through anorganization called BCIA, which
is the Biofeedback CertificationInternational Alliance.
And again, I really felt like Ijust needed a certification just
(07:09):
to validate what I knew aboutpelvic floor therapy, especially
since I wasn't a physicaltherapist, so.
Additionally at that time, whenI was taking those courses and
learning more about pelvic floorphysical therapy, I also started
taking, some courses through anonline RN to BSN program just,
um, working on my bachelor'sdegree, and that took about
(07:32):
three years to finish my BSN.
And then I was like, well, I'mkind of already used to going to
school, so I might as well justgo ahead and get my nurse
practitioner degree.
So I started looking intoprograms for master's degrees,
specifically in women's healthbecause really I'd only worked
in women's health and I knewthat I didn't really have any
desire to work in familypractice or internal medicine.
(07:53):
At that time, I didn't have anyinterest in working in men's
health.
So really I was just looking fora women's health program.
I kind of preferred that it bean online program.
So at that time there were onlytwo, uh, one of them was the
University of Cincinnati, Ibelieve, and the other was
Vanderbilt.
So I ended up applying to bothand just happened to get into
(08:13):
Vanderbilt.
So, what I thought was an onlineprogram kind of turned into.
Not necessarily online becausewe had to be there for the first
week, I believe out of everymonth.
I just decided I might as welljust move to Nashville.
After 16 years of working in thesame gynecology office where I
was completely comfortable, Idecided to pack up and move to
Nashville.
So that's what I did.
(08:35):
Moved to Nashville, uh, went toVanderbilt University School of
Nursing.
Got my Master's of science.
In nursing degree as a women'shealth nurse practitioner.
And then they also had what wascalled a seamless transition
program where you could justeither go on and complete your
doctorate.
You could also get a dualcertification in a different
specialty.
Again, at that time I wasn'treally interested in treating
(08:58):
men or internal medicine oranything like that.
So I didn't really feel like Ineeded to get my family nurse
practitioner certification, so Iwent ahead and opted to finish
my doctorate.
So, a doctor of nursingpractice, a DNP degree, and so
that's what I.
Did through Vanderbilt and thendecided to move back to the
Southwest.
So that's where my childrenwere.
(09:19):
And I kind of missed being inthe Southwest.
Not that I didn't love Nashville'cause it was a lot of fun too.
But I ended up moving back toArizona and, my first job coming
back to Arizona, I got hired inan o actually it wasn't even OB
it was just a gynecology officein Phoenix.
And, um.
It was quite an interestingposition.
(09:40):
You know, I was a brand newgrad, thank God I'd worked in an
O-B-G-Y-N office for 16 yearsand also had labor and delivery
experience.
So I was familiar with thefemale pelvis, um, because
basically I was just thrown in.
I think I had like 16 patientsscheduled on my very first day.
And, you know, this practice, Ididn't even use electronic
medical records, so it wasdefinitely interesting.
(10:02):
But hey, sink or swim, right?
So I started working there and.
You know, as you get into theworking world, and I'm sure this
is true for any career, but Ithink especially as a nurse
practitioner, I feel like youreally just learn so much more
on the job.
And that's what was happening.
I remember I had a patient whocame in, she'd been getting
hormones from another provider,and she wanted me to give her
(10:24):
prescription for testosterone.
And you know, at the time I wasjust fresh outta school.
I had still in my head all thisbook's, knowledge that they
teach in school.
And in our program they didn'teven talk that much about
menopause or hormone therapy.
I think we may have had onelecture on menopause.
Which come to find out is notnecessarily unusual.
I feel like nurse practitionerprograms, physician programs,
(10:46):
residency PAs, nobody, uh,really covers menopause well,
so.
In that situation, you have togo out and get further education
on your own about those things.
But at that time, I had no ideahow to prescribe testosterone.
Uh, I didn't know the doses.
All I knew was that testosteronewas not FDA approved for women,
and therefore I could notprescribe it.
(11:07):
So basically that's what I toldher and I felt really bad that I
couldn't help her.
And the worst thing is I didn'teven really know where to send
her, where she could get help.
So it was just, you know, kindof one of those patients that
you just leave hanging.
And still to this day, I alwaysthink about that.
I wish I would've been moreprepared.
Um, I.
Knew, what I know now abouthormone replacement, not about
(11:27):
hormone therapy, but again,those are things that they don't
really teach in, your generaleducation as a nurse
practitioner or physician.
So it wasn't until I startedworking in another practice, it
was a urogynecology office andone of my colleagues that I
worked with there, she came froma clinic that did a lot of
compounding hormones and she wasreally well versed in hormone
therapy.
So, interestingly.
(11:49):
This is how much, even as amedical professional, they don't
teach you about menopause.
I was having massive hotflashes.
I was 47, I think, and I didn'teven know that I was old enough
to be in menopause.
I'd had a hysterectomy so Iwasn't having periods.
So, it's not like I could tellby that, but I.
She's like, well, we better getyour labs drawn and see where
you're at.
So I get my labs drawn, get'emback, and I'm like, zero
(12:11):
estrogen.
So, definitely menopausal.
Right.
So prior to getting my labsdrawn, I was thinking, yeah,
maybe I'm menopausal.
Maybe I'll just start takingsome samples of, premarin, which
was a medication for those ofyou who are older maybe who have
mothers that went throughmenopause earlier, like in the
sixties, seventies, probablyeighties.
(12:31):
Um, that was really the goldstandard for estrogen therapy.
So everyone who was menopausalwas on Premarin.
It was a conjugated equineestrogen, so a synthetic
estrogen.
And that was the norm up untilthe early two thousands when.
There was a big study, thewomen's health initiative study
that came out and put the fearof hormone therapy in everyone.
And so, you know, then everybodygot off their hormone therapy.
(12:54):
So then we have a wholegeneration of people that kind
of got screwed out of, hormonereplacement.
But that's another tangent.
So anyway.
I started learning more at thistime about hormone therapy,
hormone replacement.
I started looking into coursesbecause, I felt like this is
something I really, need tofigure out.
I got introduced to theMenopause Society, which is, at
(13:15):
that time it was called theNational Association for
Menopause.
I believe nams, uh, are theinitials for that.
And they offer trainings.
They offer certification as amenopause, specialist.
And then as well as that, I wasalso looking into other
organizations.
I was a member of anorganization called NPWH, which
(13:37):
is the, nurse practitioners for.
Women's health, professionalorganization.
And so basically just trying tostart looking for courses or
conferences and getting moreknowledgeable about menopause
and hormone replacement.
And during that time also, thereis another organization that's
paired with the NPWH and that iscalled ISSWSH.
ISSWSH is the InternationalSociety for the Study of Women's
(14:00):
Sexual Health.
So I went to an ISSWSH course,that year.
It was conference, I believe itwas in Scottsdale, so it was
close by and it was one of theirannual conferences.
And after going to that, I wasreally just blown away by how
much pelvic floor therapy,sexual dysfunction hormones, how
all of that is intertwined.
And, then again, just the more Ilearned, the more I realized how
(14:22):
much I didn't know.
Right.
So at that point, when I was atthe ISSWSH conference, I saw a
table that was sponsored byanother organization called
AASECT.
So AASECT is the AmericanAssociation of Sexuality
Educators, counselors, andTherapists.
And again, just noticing thatinterplay between sexual
dysfunction and pelvic floortherapy.
(14:43):
So I'd gotten onto the AASECTwebsite and was looking at some
of the resources that they had,and really just started thinking
about potentially becomingcertified as a sexuality
counselor.
This is something that.
I felt like, you know, I've beendoing this for 20 years.
I have patients that I see forpelvic floor therapy that we
really just take a lot of time.
Just getting to know each other,getting comfortable with each
(15:04):
other, having that rapport and Ifound that patients just really
started opening up to me when Igot more comfortable talking
about sexuality and sexualdysfunction.
Things like pain with sex,inability to orgasm, any of
those things that I talk.
With patients about on a dailybasis.
So, you know, the more you talkabout it and the more you
discuss it, it just becomes somuch more natural for you to
talk about.
(15:24):
So at that point, it wasn't evenweird for me to talk about sex.
So I realized, I should lookinto getting certified as a sex
counselor because that really iswhere my passion's at.
I felt like I had the medicalknowledge about it, but I really
wanted to learn more about the,psychosocial aspect and working
with patients, in that aspect.
So I didn't make that decisionright away to do this.
(15:45):
It's just something that I havebeen working on for like the
past three or four years or so.
But I finished, last year and sonow as a certified sex
counselor, I'm offering virtualsex counseling slash intimacy
coaching visits for the OB GYNclinic that I'm currently
working at.
So also while I was learningmore about hormone therapy, I
(16:05):
really did start developing aninterest in transgender hormones
and as a women's health nursepractitioner.
My scope didn't necessarilyallow me to treat people of all
genders.
It was kind of a gray area,especially when you get into
sexual health.
But just, so I didn't have tonavigate that gray area.
I decided to go back to schooland get dual certified as a
family nurse practitioner.
So I did that and then startedlooking into, just other
(16:27):
certifications to learn moreabout hormone therapy and, uh,
planning to take thecertification course through the
Menopause Society, later thisyear to be certified as a
menopause specialist.
So really what inspired me tocreate a podcast like this about
sexuality and sexual health is.
The overwhelming amount ofmisinformation, the stigma, the
(16:48):
silence that surrounds thesetopics.
So many people grow upinternalizing shame, may be
rooted in cultural or evenreligious beliefs, and often
teach that sexuality issomething to be hidden or
feared, as opposed to beingunderstood.
So I think especially women, Ifeel like women experience
additional barriers in exploringand expressing their sexuality.
(17:09):
Oftentimes due to a lot ofpatriarchal norms that continue
to devalue the equality ofsexuality, you know, the media,
social platforms, those thingsfurther complicate it by
promoting really justunrealistic expectations about
bodies, behavior, relationship.
You know, those things that candistort healthy perspectives,
especially when you're lookingat intimacy and self-worth.
(17:31):
So my goal with the PG spot isto really just offer honest,
inclusive conversations thatchallenge these harmful
narratives and help peoplereclaim their right to sexual
knowledge.
Empowerment and really justnormalize the conversations
around sex.
So that is my introduction.
That's how I got to where I amtoday and my journey in women's
health, sexual health,menopausal health, hormones, all
(17:53):
the things.
So I truly hope that you enjoywhat's to come in future
episodes, I hope to have avariety of different options.
Some of the episodes, I'll justbe talking solo about some of
the common problems that I seein practice.
I also plan to have episodeswhere I am interviewing with
other specialists, experts in avariety of sexual topics.
(18:16):
So if there are things that youwould like to hear about, if you
have any.
Questions, concerns, anythingthat you're struggling with
personally, you can always sendme an email.
And my email address on mywebsite is
email@doctorpattyj.com, and thatis Dr.
Spelled out,D-O-C-T-O-R-P-A-T-T-Y j.com.
(18:39):
So until next time, staycurious, stay empowered, and
stay you.
That's it for today's episode.
Thanks for listening, and besure to rate and review the
podcast on whatever platformyou're listening from and share
it with your friends.
That's a great way to help reachnew listeners and make this a
(19:00):
more sex positive world.
Also, I'd love your feedback andquestions, so send me a message.
It's at email@doctorpattyj.com,and that's doctor spelled out,
D-O-C-T-O-R-P-A, tt y j.com.
Until next time, stay curious,stay empowered, and stay you.
Welcome to the PG spot, where our goal is to take the X
out of sex by breaking down thebarriers that prevent open
communication about sexualhealth.
I'm Dr.
Patty Jalomo.
A dual certified nursepractitioner, pelvic floor
therapist, and certified sexualcounselor.
I'm here to provide expertinsights, debunk myths, and
empower you to embrace yoursexual wellbeing.
(00:29):
Whether you're looking foranswers or simply curious, join
us as we open up theconversation around sex,
intimacy and everything inbetween.
I want to take this opportunityto acknowledge that some content
may not be appropriate for alllisteners.
I'm a huge proponent of honestand accurate information
regarding sexuality, but I'malso mindful that this should be
(00:50):
age appropriate.
Therefore, if you are under 18,this may not be the podcast for
you.
Additionally, some of thelanguage used in this podcast.
Maybe offensive to somelisteners, please take these
things into consideration beforegoing forward with your
consensual participation in thispodcast.
The opinions expressed by myselfor my guests are just that.
(01:12):
And these opinions are neitherexpected or required to be
shared by all listeners.
The information that is providedis for educational and
entertainment purposes only, andshould not be mistaken for
individual medical advice if youdo find the information that we
cover in the PG spot.
Helpful.
Interesting or informative.
Please rate and review thepodcast wherever you're
(01:33):
listening from.
If you think this information isimportant, I would love for you
to share it with your friends orfamily.
This is a great way to get theinformation out to more people.
So thank you for listening andlet's get on with the show.
In this first episode, I reallyjust want to introduce myself,
share some background, andexplain what inspired me to
(01:54):
specialize in sexual health.
It's definitely not where Ithought I'd be 30 years ago when
I started my nursing career.
I started off as an associate'sdegree nurse and worked as an RN
in labor and delivery, and thenlater worked in an OB GYN
office.
Um, I really loved working inthe clinic setting, and I was
there for 16 years.
Overall, I started out in anursing role, but after about 10
(02:16):
years, I had the opportunity tolearn something new, which
really changed the trajectory ofmy career.
We had a pelvic floor physicaltherapist who started practicing
at our clinic, and for those ofyou who don't know what a pelvic
floor physical therapist is orwhat they do, it's basically a
provider who specializes inpelvic muscle dysfunction.
(02:37):
Now, most often these arephysical therapists because the
scope of practice for physicaltherapists is basically working
with patients, um, muscles,ligaments, how that works
together for proper functioningoverall in the body.
Um, sometimes muscles are tootight.
Other times muscles may be tooloose or too weak, so a physical
(02:58):
therapist can help withrehabilitation after surgeries
or injuries.
That's a lot of what a physicaltherapist might do.
Now, a pelvic floor physicaltherapist is specialized even
further.
A pelvic floor physicaltherapist works with patients
either to strengthen the musclesin the pelvic floor to treat
conditions like urinaryincontinence, pelvic organ
(03:19):
prolapse, fecal incontinence,that type of thing, or to help
those muscles to relax.
So there are situations wheresomeone may have too much
tension in the pelvic floor.
And this is known as hypertonicpelvic floor muscles, and that
can lead to pain, nervecompression.
It really plays a large role insexual dysfunction.
(03:40):
Oftentimes these patients haveissues with painful intercourse.
There's a condition calledvaginismus, and that's where the
muscles are literally so tightthat you can't, um.
Patients can't have any kind ofvaginal penetration at all, so
you can't get a finger in atampon, anything like that.
So really for these patients,the focus is to learn how to
(04:01):
relax or down train the musclesand lengthen the muscles to
allow for better blood flow.
Eliminate any kind of nervecompression.
So in a nutshell, that's kind ofwhat a pelvic floor physical
therapist does or a pelvic floortherapist.
Obviously it's much more complexthan that.
But that just gives a generalidea of what, pelvic floor
therapy is.
(04:21):
So we had the opportunity inthat office to have a wonderful
pelvic floor physical therapist.
She started the program in ourclinic and was able to treat
patients there.
It was really, I think,beneficial for patients to be
able to.
Come to a place where they'realready comfortable.
And it was just a good servicethat we were able to offer our
(04:42):
patients.
She did a really great job, um,after several years, I'm not
sure how many years she wasactually there, but her husband
ended up being transferred, soshe was going to be moving out
of state.
At that time, you know, and thiswas nearly 20 years ago, there
weren't a lot of physicaltherapists that were
specifically trained in pelvicmuscle dysfunction or pelvic
(05:03):
floor therapy.
So basically as an rn I was ableto learn how to do pelvic floor
therapy from her.
So, you know, she taught me somuch before she left, but then
as an RN doing this.
Not a physical therapist.
I really felt like I needed moretraining, uh, taking more
courses, really just to validatethat I knew what I was doing
(05:24):
with pelvic floor therapy.
So I started taking all thecourses that I could.
Herman and Wallace is a largeprovider of education for people
interested in learning moreabout pelvic muscle dysfunction.
So they provide a lot ofeducational courses for physical
therapists, occupationaltherapists, physicians, nurse
practitioners.
(05:45):
PAs, RNs, really anybody whowants to specialize in pelvic
muscle dysfunction has probablygone through some of Herman and
Wallace courses.
So that's what I did to startwith.
I just started taking basicpelvic floor courses, learning
about the musculature, learningdifferent techniques, learning
how to determine if a muscle wastoo tight, if we needed to work
on strengthening.
(06:06):
So through Herman and Wallace, Iwas able to take a lot of
different courses related topelvic muscle dysfunction.
I took some courses in boweldysfunction.
I learned some manualtechniques, took some courses in
manual techniques, things likemyofascial release, visceral
mobilization.
I even took a course in yoga forpelvic pain.
So a lot of different courseswere offered by Herman and
(06:27):
Wallace, and I just felt likewhen I would take a course, then
I just realized that there wasso much that I still didn't
know.
So I really just wanted to takeevery opportunity that I could
to learn as much as I couldabout pelvic floor therapy and
pelvic muscle dysfunction.
So that took a while, you know,over the course of years when I
(06:48):
was doing pelvic floor therapyin the office, taking these
additional courses, I ended up.
Becoming board certified as abiofeedback therapist in pelvic
muscle dysfunction through anorganization called BCIA, which
is the Biofeedback CertificationInternational Alliance.
And again, I really felt like Ijust needed a certification just
(07:09):
to validate what I knew aboutpelvic floor therapy, especially
since I wasn't a physicaltherapist, so.
Additionally at that time, whenI was taking those courses and
learning more about pelvic floorphysical therapy, I also started
taking, some courses through anonline RN to BSN program just,
um, working on my bachelor'sdegree, and that took about
(07:32):
three years to finish my BSN.
And then I was like, well, I'mkind of already used to going to
school, so I might as well justgo ahead and get my nurse
practitioner degree.
So I started looking intoprograms for master's degrees,
specifically in women's healthbecause really I'd only worked
in women's health and I knewthat I didn't really have any
desire to work in familypractice or internal medicine.
(07:53):
At that time, I didn't have anyinterest in working in men's
health.
So really I was just looking fora women's health program.
I kind of preferred that it bean online program.
So at that time there were onlytwo, uh, one of them was the
University of Cincinnati, Ibelieve, and the other was
Vanderbilt.
So I ended up applying to bothand just happened to get into
(08:13):
Vanderbilt.
So, what I thought was an onlineprogram kind of turned into.
Not necessarily online becausewe had to be there for the first
week, I believe out of everymonth.
I just decided I might as welljust move to Nashville.
After 16 years of working in thesame gynecology office where I
was completely comfortable, Idecided to pack up and move to
Nashville.
So that's what I did.
(08:35):
Moved to Nashville, uh, went toVanderbilt University School of
Nursing.
Got my Master's of science.
In nursing degree as a women'shealth nurse practitioner.
And then they also had what wascalled a seamless transition
program where you could justeither go on and complete your
doctorate.
You could also get a dualcertification in a different
specialty.
Again, at that time I wasn'treally interested in treating
(08:58):
men or internal medicine oranything like that.
So I didn't really feel like Ineeded to get my family nurse
practitioner certification, so Iwent ahead and opted to finish
my doctorate.
So, a doctor of nursingpractice, a DNP degree, and so
that's what I.
Did through Vanderbilt and thendecided to move back to the
Southwest.
So that's where my childrenwere.
(09:19):
And I kind of missed being inthe Southwest.
Not that I didn't love Nashville'cause it was a lot of fun too.
But I ended up moving back toArizona and, my first job coming
back to Arizona, I got hired inan o actually it wasn't even OB
it was just a gynecology officein Phoenix.
And, um.
It was quite an interestingposition.
(09:40):
You know, I was a brand newgrad, thank God I'd worked in an
O-B-G-Y-N office for 16 yearsand also had labor and delivery
experience.
So I was familiar with thefemale pelvis, um, because
basically I was just thrown in.
I think I had like 16 patientsscheduled on my very first day.
And, you know, this practice, Ididn't even use electronic
medical records, so it wasdefinitely interesting.
(10:02):
But hey, sink or swim, right?
So I started working there and.
You know, as you get into theworking world, and I'm sure this
is true for any career, but Ithink especially as a nurse
practitioner, I feel like youreally just learn so much more
on the job.
And that's what was happening.
I remember I had a patient whocame in, she'd been getting
hormones from another provider,and she wanted me to give her
(10:24):
prescription for testosterone.
And you know, at the time I wasjust fresh outta school.
I had still in my head all thisbook's, knowledge that they
teach in school.
And in our program they didn'teven talk that much about
menopause or hormone therapy.
I think we may have had onelecture on menopause.
Which come to find out is notnecessarily unusual.
I feel like nurse practitionerprograms, physician programs,
(10:46):
residency PAs, nobody, uh,really covers menopause well,
so.
In that situation, you have togo out and get further education
on your own about those things.
But at that time, I had no ideahow to prescribe testosterone.
Uh, I didn't know the doses.
All I knew was that testosteronewas not FDA approved for women,
and therefore I could notprescribe it.
(11:07):
So basically that's what I toldher and I felt really bad that I
couldn't help her.
And the worst thing is I didn'teven really know where to send
her, where she could get help.
So it was just, you know, kindof one of those patients that
you just leave hanging.
And still to this day, I alwaysthink about that.
I wish I would've been moreprepared.
Um, I.
Knew, what I know now abouthormone replacement, not about
(11:27):
hormone therapy, but again,those are things that they don't
really teach in, your generaleducation as a nurse
practitioner or physician.
So it wasn't until I startedworking in another practice, it
was a urogynecology office andone of my colleagues that I
worked with there, she came froma clinic that did a lot of
compounding hormones and she wasreally well versed in hormone
therapy.
So, interestingly.
(11:49):
This is how much, even as amedical professional, they don't
teach you about menopause.
I was having massive hotflashes.
I was 47, I think, and I didn'teven know that I was old enough
to be in menopause.
I'd had a hysterectomy so Iwasn't having periods.
So, it's not like I could tellby that, but I.
She's like, well, we better getyour labs drawn and see where
you're at.
So I get my labs drawn, get'emback, and I'm like, zero
(12:11):
estrogen.
So, definitely menopausal.
Right.
So prior to getting my labsdrawn, I was thinking, yeah,
maybe I'm menopausal.
Maybe I'll just start takingsome samples of, premarin, which
was a medication for those ofyou who are older maybe who have
mothers that went throughmenopause earlier, like in the
sixties, seventies, probablyeighties.
(12:31):
Um, that was really the goldstandard for estrogen therapy.
So everyone who was menopausalwas on Premarin.
It was a conjugated equineestrogen, so a synthetic
estrogen.
And that was the norm up untilthe early two thousands when.
There was a big study, thewomen's health initiative study
that came out and put the fearof hormone therapy in everyone.
And so, you know, then everybodygot off their hormone therapy.
(12:54):
So then we have a wholegeneration of people that kind
of got screwed out of, hormonereplacement.
But that's another tangent.
So anyway.
I started learning more at thistime about hormone therapy,
hormone replacement.
I started looking into coursesbecause, I felt like this is
something I really, need tofigure out.
I got introduced to theMenopause Society, which is, at
(13:15):
that time it was called theNational Association for
Menopause.
I believe nams, uh, are theinitials for that.
And they offer trainings.
They offer certification as amenopause, specialist.
And then as well as that, I wasalso looking into other
organizations.
I was a member of anorganization called NPWH, which
(13:37):
is the, nurse practitioners for.
Women's health, professionalorganization.
And so basically just trying tostart looking for courses or
conferences and getting moreknowledgeable about menopause
and hormone replacement.
And during that time also, thereis another organization that's
paired with the NPWH and that iscalled ISSWSH.
ISSWSH is the InternationalSociety for the Study of Women's
(14:00):
Sexual Health.
So I went to an ISSWSH course,that year.
It was conference, I believe itwas in Scottsdale, so it was
close by and it was one of theirannual conferences.
And after going to that, I wasreally just blown away by how
much pelvic floor therapy,sexual dysfunction hormones, how
all of that is intertwined.
And, then again, just the more Ilearned, the more I realized how
(14:22):
much I didn't know.
Right.
So at that point, when I was atthe ISSWSH conference, I saw a
table that was sponsored byanother organization called
AASECT.
So AASECT is the AmericanAssociation of Sexuality
Educators, counselors, andTherapists.
And again, just noticing thatinterplay between sexual
dysfunction and pelvic floortherapy.
(14:43):
So I'd gotten onto the AASECTwebsite and was looking at some
of the resources that they had,and really just started thinking
about potentially becomingcertified as a sexuality
counselor.
This is something that.
I felt like, you know, I've beendoing this for 20 years.
I have patients that I see forpelvic floor therapy that we
really just take a lot of time.
Just getting to know each other,getting comfortable with each
(15:04):
other, having that rapport and Ifound that patients just really
started opening up to me when Igot more comfortable talking
about sexuality and sexualdysfunction.
Things like pain with sex,inability to orgasm, any of
those things that I talk.
With patients about on a dailybasis.
So, you know, the more you talkabout it and the more you
discuss it, it just becomes somuch more natural for you to
talk about.
(15:24):
So at that point, it wasn't evenweird for me to talk about sex.
So I realized, I should lookinto getting certified as a sex
counselor because that really iswhere my passion's at.
I felt like I had the medicalknowledge about it, but I really
wanted to learn more about the,psychosocial aspect and working
with patients, in that aspect.
So I didn't make that decisionright away to do this.
(15:45):
It's just something that I havebeen working on for like the
past three or four years or so.
But I finished, last year and sonow as a certified sex
counselor, I'm offering virtualsex counseling slash intimacy
coaching visits for the OB GYNclinic that I'm currently
working at.
So also while I was learningmore about hormone therapy, I
(16:05):
really did start developing aninterest in transgender hormones
and as a women's health nursepractitioner.
My scope didn't necessarilyallow me to treat people of all
genders.
It was kind of a gray area,especially when you get into
sexual health.
But just, so I didn't have tonavigate that gray area.
I decided to go back to schooland get dual certified as a
family nurse practitioner.
So I did that and then startedlooking into, just other
(16:27):
certifications to learn moreabout hormone therapy and, uh,
planning to take thecertification course through the
Menopause Society, later thisyear to be certified as a
menopause specialist.
So really what inspired me tocreate a podcast like this about
sexuality and sexual health is.
The overwhelming amount ofmisinformation, the stigma, the
(16:48):
silence that surrounds thesetopics.
So many people grow upinternalizing shame, may be
rooted in cultural or evenreligious beliefs, and often
teach that sexuality issomething to be hidden or
feared, as opposed to beingunderstood.
So I think especially women, Ifeel like women experience
additional barriers in exploringand expressing their sexuality.
(17:09):
Oftentimes due to a lot ofpatriarchal norms that continue
to devalue the equality ofsexuality, you know, the media,
social platforms, those thingsfurther complicate it by
promoting really justunrealistic expectations about
bodies, behavior, relationship.
You know, those things that candistort healthy perspectives,
especially when you're lookingat intimacy and self-worth.
(17:31):
So my goal with the PG spot isto really just offer honest,
inclusive conversations thatchallenge these harmful
narratives and help peoplereclaim their right to sexual
knowledge.
Empowerment and really justnormalize the conversations
around sex.
So that is my introduction.
That's how I got to where I amtoday and my journey in women's
health, sexual health,menopausal health, hormones, all
(17:53):
the things.
So I truly hope that you enjoywhat's to come in future
episodes, I hope to have avariety of different options.
Some of the episodes, I'll justbe talking solo about some of
the common problems that I seein practice.
I also plan to have episodeswhere I am interviewing with
other specialists, experts in avariety of sexual topics.
(18:16):
So if there are things that youwould like to hear about, if you
have any.
Questions, concerns, anythingthat you're struggling with
personally, you can always sendme an email.
And my email address on mywebsite is
email@doctorpattyj.com, and thatis Dr.
Spelled out,D-O-C-T-O-R-P-A-T-T-Y j.com.
(18:39):
So until next time, staycurious, stay empowered, and
stay you.
That's it for today's episode.
Thanks for listening, and besure to rate and review the
podcast on whatever platformyou're listening from and share
it with your friends.
That's a great way to help reachnew listeners and make this a
(19:00):
more sex positive world.
Also, I'd love your feedback andquestions, so send me a message.
It's at email@doctorpattyj.com,and that's doctor spelled out,
D-O-C-T-O-R-P-A, tt y j.com.
Until next time, stay curious,stay empowered, and stay you.
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