Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Jessica Sanchez. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Jessica, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Was there a defining moment in your professional career? A moment that changed the trajectory of your career?
In 2017, I was halfway through my graduate school program, and I saw a quote that said, “Be who you needed when you were younger” by New York Times best selling author, Brad Montague. The quote is used to inspire positive change, such as being the first to do good or addressing negative behaviors in oneself. Some say it can also help people see the world differently, discover blind spots, and be great mentors or influencers. Ironically enough, starting my graduate program meant this first generation, Mexican American woman, left her hometown in Lincoln, Nebraska and moved halfway across the country to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to pursue her dreams and aspirations of becoming a s*x therapist. I was the first in my family to graduate college and the first to move away – rewriting the intergenerational script for future Sanchez women in my family. Additionally, I was the first in my family to talk about human s*xuality and normalize conversations around women’s s*xual health and social justice causes.
This quote motivated me to continue to become the adult I needed when I was younger through my education and doctoral research. The adult who will answer questions about puberty and menstruation. The adult who normalizes conversations about consent, healthy relationships, and boundaries. The adult who will never shy away from talking about s*x, pleasure and reproductive rights. The adult who will encourage self & bodily exploration and promote how sacred one’s s*xual energy is. I have become that adult. I have become that woman. And it feels dang good! Becoming who I needed when I was younger was the best form of choosing ‘me’. More importantly, I am healing my inner child and loving her unconditionally.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I was born and raised in Lincoln, Nebraska. Usually, when I tell people this, they are very surprised, and their first comment always falls along the lines of…”people of color live there?!” I am a biracial, Mexican American Latina. My father is Mexican, and my mother is white. My father is second generation and his family migrated to Nebraska by way of Tejas for better farming opportunities. As a result of their success, my father’s parents opened a Mexican restaurant, El Ranchito, right outside of Lincoln. On Sunday’s, my abuelita would make menudo and all of the white folks would make their way to the restaurant for her incredible food. My mother’s family was one of their consistent customers. Their families grew close, and my mother started waitressing at the ranch. After my father returned from serving in the Marines, he reconnected with my mother (her glow up was real!). They got married shortly after and then I was born. I never leave out their love story because one, I am a direct reflection of them and two, it wasn’t easy for them as an interracial couple in the Midwest. Their ability to persevere through uncomfortable life situations due to their race is in my DNA. Code switching is my own survival skill that allows me to navigate almost any space with ease and confidence. It wasn’t always like that though. I grew up not feeling Mexican enough for the Mexicans and not white enough for the whites. I remember when I heard this line distinctly in the movie, Selena, and I started crying because it resonated with my life experiences so much. We don’t talk about the experiences of biracial Latinas enough, so I take pride in sharing my own identity to normalize the conversation for others and for other Latinas to not feel so alone.
After I was born, my parents were blessed to have twin girls. Our bond as a family is very strong and falls in line with the Mexican cultural value of familismo. When I have difficult decisions to make, those are the four humans I turn to because their words hold the most value in my life. Having only daughters as children, my father was overly protective and strict. We had two rules growing up: 1. Do not get pregnant out of wedlock and, 2. Everyone (myself and my sisters) becomes a doctor. His rules, plus the lack of s*x positive, affirming, and consent-driven, K-12 s*x education in Nebraska, ignited my curiosity with s*x education overall. I remember becoming the unofficial s*x educator amongst my girlfriends in high school because I volunteered at Planned Parenthood. I made sure that everyone knew how to use condoms and/or got on the pill because I didn’t want any of my girlfriends getting pregnant.
After high school, I enrolled at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL). This is where I remember coming fully into my Latina identity as I joined a national Latina sorority, Lambda Theta Nu Sorority, Inc. Since I was the first born in my family and the first to go to college, I was always taking care of others and more specifically, my younger sisters. When I joined the sorority, it was the first time I had women who looked like me guiding me through the college process. My interest in human s*xuality continued to grow throughout undergrad as I majored in International Studies and examined policy related to human s*x trafficking. Once I graduated, I started working in full time at UNL. Working at UNL allowed me to oversee my younger sisters and ensure both graduated on time. Once they graduated, we all started our doctorate journeys at the same time.
In 2015, I moved to Philadelphia, PA to earn my MSW and MEd in Human S*xuality Studies at Widener University. This is where I found my calling in s*x therapy and knew my career had officially started. In 2022, I earned my PhD in Human S*xuality. My research interests examine s*xuality and pleasure, and my theoretical blessings stem from Chicana and Black Feminist Theory. My doctoral research, Chingonas & S*x: A qualitative study examining how Mexican American women experience s*xual subjectivity, is my forever passion project and I am currently converting my research into a s*xual wellness book for Chingonas. As you can see in the title of my research, I am a proud Chingona! I never hesitate to embrace this identity because I know what I do, as a s*x therapist & pleasure advocate, it is still so taboo in my culture and as a larger society. Especially given the little rights women have in this country, at the current time of this interview.
In 2018, I moved to Texas so I could be closer to Nebraska and live in a city where there was a demand for s*x therapy. I was afforded the opportunity to join the University of Texas Arlington (UTA) where I served in a director leadership role from 2018-2023. I was very intentional about prioritizing inclusive excellence to ensure that every space my team occupied, human beings were seen, heard, and recognized. During my time in Student Affairs, I was able to create the Student Advocacy Services department that housed the following programs: Relationship Violence & S*xual Assault Prevention (RVSP), LGBTQ+ Program, Maverick Pantry, and Emergency Assistance Program (EAP). In 2021, my dedication and passion to serve streamlined my success with opening the inaugural Maverick Pantry, where we were able to secure a $250,000 grant from Kroger to fight against food insecurity. Additionally, my team and I increased victim reporting by threefold with the implementation of new reporting and s*x-positive campaigns and we also launched the first ever Maverick Rainbow Scholarship – raising over $5,000 in 48-hours to fund the scholarship. I absolutely loved serving students in student affairs and knew when I accepted the full-time faculty position fall 2023, it would be an easy transition into the classroom due to my passion for serving and education. Moving into a faculty role would also support my dreams of becoming an entrepreneur as a therapist, pleasure advocate and educator.
Currently, I am a full-time Assistant Professor of Practice at UTA in the School of Social Work and I am a licensed s*x therapist with over 8 years of experience working in the fields of human s*xuality, higher education, s*xual violence prevention, and advocacy. What fills my heart the most is advocating and empowering women to restore their s*xual autonomy and agency and assist with helping them write their own pleasure narratives. My specializations include the healing of s*xual trauma, s*xual pain, prenatal, pregnancy, and the postpartum journey, eldest and only born daughters, life transitions, s*xual exploration, imposter syndrome, and college students. I am passionate about decolonizing mental health through holistic and ancestorial healing practices to better serve historically oppressed communities. More importantly, I will forever be committed to rewriting the pleasure narrative of women of color within the field of academia.
What sets me apart from others is my specialization in s*x therapy and human s*xuality studies. When others meet me, they are always surprised but then quickly commend my work due to the lack of therapist providing this service. This goes to say the same for my presentations that I conduct within the community and in professional spaces. My presentations consist of highlighting pleasure and intimacy post-victimization, healthy relationships, consent and boundaries, and the power of mindfulness to reconnect with ones body. My ability to navigate these conversations with grace and ease, is also a quality I take great pride in. When others so courageously share with me what they are experiencing, I offer empathy and understanding. I believe in abundance so whether or not they pursue me as their therapist, I will always follow up with resources to assist them with what they are experiencing. Shame and guilt thrive in silence and it is always my goal to normalize courageous conversations whether in a therapeutic setting and/or in an educational workshop space.
What I am most proud of is that I have become the adult and woman I needed when I was younger. This has allowed me to become extremely confident in who I am as a woman and what I stand for. My self-confidence translates into the ways I show up for my clients in the therapeutic setting. I lead with grace and insert accountability to ensure my clients are making substantial progress in their healing journey’s. More importantly, I want potential clients to know that I prioritize meeting them exactly where they are in their own journey.
For future business partnerships, I am confident that my speaking engagements will not be like the workshops you’ve attended before. My personality is dynamic, my teaching style is hands-on, I prioritize diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility, and my passion and interactive curriculum design keeps teams engaged and wanting more. Lastly, I believe in abundance. If you are not familiar with abundance, I encourage you to learn what it means to lead a life with abundance; especially if you are an entrepreneur like me. For me, leading with abundance means I believe that there is room at the top for everyone, and I will bring people with me as I earn seats at tables that may not be accessible to others. Leading with abundance means you naturally speak high vibrations and positive energy. We need more people leading with abundance in our world.
Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?
The short answer – networking! Being an entrepreneur, you truly are your biggest fan and it is your responsibility to establish connections and sell your services. In the beginning of opening your business, you may feel inclined to say ‘yes’ to every opportunity. I want to gently challenge you to always listen to your intuition. Our body’s rarely fail us when they do not necessarily feel like it may be the best decision. Honor your body by acknowledging your uncertainty. Additionally, seek out mentors who are already doing similar work in the same field as you. It does not make sense to reinvent a wheel that is already running smoothly. Learn from them, be vulnerable and in due time, you will be able to put your own spin on that wheel as well. Be intentional when seeking mentors too! Be clear on your intentions, what you need, and what you can offer within the mentorship relationship. By utilizing these strategies and staying true to myself, I have built strong relationships with community partners that have directly impacted the referrals sent my way for clients and workshop opportunities.
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
First, I would say my authenticity. I am comfortable in my own skin and individuals can naturally feel that when they meet me for the first time. Next, my consistency. When I say I am going to do something, I keep my word. This allows me to prove myself and establish trust and rapport with community partners and client referrals. Lastly, my passion. I don’t shy away from my identities of s*x therapist, pleasure advocate, and educator. These identities are extremely intersectional and allow me to be in a magnitude of diverse places to promote s*xual health and wellness.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.drjsanchez.com/
- Instagram: latinasexologist
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jsanchezchangemaker/
