An Intimate Life: Sex, Love, and My Journey as a Surrogate Partner - Softcover

Cohen-Greene, Cheryl T.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1593765061 ISBN 13: 9781593765064

Publisher: Soft Skull, 2012

Synopsis

For the past forty years, Cheryl Cohen Greene has worked as a surrogate partner, helping clients to confront, consider, and ultimately accept their sexuality. In this riveting memoir, Cohen Greene shares some of her most moving cases, and also reveals her own sexual coming-of-age. Beginning with a rigid Catholic upbringing in the 1950s, where she was taught to think sex and sexual desires were unnatural and wrong, Cohen Greene struggled to reconcile her sexual identity.

An Intimate Life offers a candid look into the personal and professional life of a surrogate partner, examining the cultural and emotional ramifications of pursuing something most people do not immediately understand.

The memoir opens with Cohen Greene's work with Berkeley-based poet and journalist Mark O'Brien, whose essay "On Seeing A Sex Surrogate" was adapted into a major motion picture titled "The Sessions," which was released nationwide in October 2012.

About this title

About the Author:

Cheryl Cohen Greene has been in private clinical practice as a surrogate partner and Consultant in Human Sexuality since 1973. She was trained in the Masters and Johnson modality and was on the training staff of San Francisco Sex Information for 19 years. Cohen Green is a certified Sex Educator and Clinical Sexologist, and in 2004 she earned her DHS (Doctor of Human Sexuality) from the Institute for the Advanced Study of Human Sexuality in San Francisco. She is currently the Vice President of of IPSA (the International Professional Surro¬gates Association). She was one of the founders of BASA (the Bay Area Surrogates Association). Cohen Green is a frequent media guest, who has been interviewed on Larry King Live, the the National Geographic Channel, the WE Channel, and CNN, among others.

Lorna Garano is a freelance writer and publicist.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.:

Excerpt from An Intimate Life

I slowly lifted off the blanket that covered him. His frail body was in a red, long-sleeve, button down shirt and a pair of black sweatpants. Slow and gentle, slow and gentle, I said to myself, like a mantra. Let’s start with your shirt.” I undid the first button and then worked my way down the column of buttons. When I was finished I undid the button at the wrist of his left sleeve. Then I folded his shirt over his arm as much as I could. The collar rested off his shoulder against Mark’s salt-colored skin. I briskly rubbed my hands together to warm them up and then slid one under the shirt. I slowly brought Mark’s delicate arm toward me while inching the sleeve off of his shoulder. As I continued to peel it away I brought his arm gradually back down toward the bed. The sleeve was almost completely off when Mark screamed loud. Oh my God! Had I hurt him? What’s going on?” I said in as calm a voice as I could muster. My nail, you caught my nail in the shirt,” he said. Okay, okay Let me see.” I freed his fingers from the shirt that was now clustered around his hand. Mark, I need to know when something doesn’t feel good, but yelling isn’t sexy. I know we need to be very careful with your body, so don’t ever not tell me if you’re feeling uncomfortable or worried about getting hurt, but try to do it in a calmer voice. Remember, part of what we’re doing here is modeling how you’ll communicate with a partner and that could really scare someone and kill the mood.” Sure scared me, I thought. I realized that I had goose bumps on my skin that I hoped that Mark didn’t notice. Do you need some oxygen before we go on?” To my surprise he didn’t. After I had freed his left side from his shirt I went to work on the right.

About this edition

• Publisher: Soft Skull
• Publication date: 2012
• ISBN 10: 1593765061
• ISBN 13: 9781593765064
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 272
• Editor: Garano Lorna