11: Loving Through This

Jazzmine and Jordan have been together for almost a decade. They’ve built a beautiful and fulfilling life in Iowa and you could say that they’re the “perfect” couple. But, there’s one thing that most people don’t know about their relationship: they’ve never had penetrative sex. While Jazzmine used to keep this secret, now she and Jordan are ready to share how they navigate chronic vulvovaginal and pelvic pain together.

Even as recently as the 1960s, American courts were declaring that a marriage without regular penetrative sex was an invalid marriage. In today’s episode, we hear how Jazzmine and Jordan have worked to redefine intimacy in their relationship and resist social and historical narratives about marriage and sex. 

What is Tight Lipped?

Tight Lipped is a storytelling podcast that makes public what is often thought of as “private pain.” We ask big questions about female chronic pain. We explore how gender, race, sexual orientation and class impact women and non-binary folks' experiences of healthcare and of their own bodies. Our show focuses on conditions that are extremely common (like vestibulodynia, vaginismus and endometriosis), yet carry with them a social stigma and often impact mental health, identity and intimate relationships.