5 EMOTIONAL SECRETS TO A WOMAN'S SEXUAL SATISFACTION by Gail Saltz, M.D.

Morgan Road Books/Broadway, April 2007

You’ve seen her. She’s not classically beautiful, but she walks into a room and every man turns around to look. She's vital. She’s confident. What’s the difference between this woman and the rest of us?

Dr. Saltz has seen that her women patients have told themselves a story about sex that is keeping them from claiming their sexuality. Signs of it show up when they say that “Sex isn’t that important anymore,” “My hormones are going crazy and I’m not interested,” “I’m too busy,” or “I’m too tired.” She shows that women who feel this way are cutting off the most vital part of themselves—the part that could rejuvenate and energize everything else in their life: work, family, intimacy, and even creativity.

There are five types of stories that keep women from enjoying a healthy sexuality, and Saltz has a questionnaire that helps readers find out which one they’re stuck with and how each one sabotages a woman’s sex life. Once you know your story, a few simple exercises exploring your past help you to begin freeing yourself from it and gain the confidence and self-assuredness you always wished you had.