Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Taylor Spaziani. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Taylor, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. How’s you first get into your field – what was your first job in this field?

As a blossoming sexuality educator and sex therapist, I was eager to jump in the field from a very young age! When I was in the middle of completing my bachelor’s degree, it was time that I completed an undergraduate internship. Finding an internship as an undergraduate student in the field of sexuality is incredibly difficult, but I was so passionate I was determined to find something!

I reached out to many professionals in my circle and asked around if anyone knew of anything in the field for sexuality internships. I also emailed and reached out to professionals in the field to gather any insight or advice that they had to offer. After a few weeks, one of my professors got a response on Facebook from Heather McPherson at the Sexual Health Alliance (SHA) and I was offered an undergraduate internship with her running conferences and events for the organization. After about 1 year of internship with her, I was hired on as her executive assistant, director of operations for SHA, and also as her clinical manager and client care coordinator at her practice, Respark Therapy & Associates.

I am so thankful for this experience, as it really opened my world to the field of sexuality as a whole. I have learned so much both clinically, educationally, personally and professionally.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

Hello readers,

My name is Taylor Rose Spaziani. I have been passionate about being a sexuality professional from a very young age. I realized early on that sexuality is a taboo topic, and because of how taboo it is, people unfortunately find a lot of hardship when it comes to expressing their sexual selves or gender orientation. Something I love about sexuality, is just how diverse it is. None of us are exactly the same when it comes to sexuality and gender and finding our uniqueness is what makes our humanity so beautiful. Keeping this in mind is what helps me to never get bored doing this type of work.

As I begin my career into therapy and education, I think having a background in sexuality will help me, my clients and my students immensely when they are looking to work on issues or topics that involve sexuality or gender. As I am still a student finishing up my last year in counseling practicum and internship, I am looking forward to bringing my sexuality education and knowledge with me as I begin to work with clients. I think it is especially important when working with queer communities, as being a competent professional in this area is important when caring for client’s mental health.

In regards to sexuality education, I am nearly fully certified as an AASECT Sexuality Educator! Within the year, I will have completed my 25+ hours of supervision and will be submitting my application to AASECT for full certification. I have been a teaching assistant for CU Denver’s HDFR Human Sexuality class for the past 8-9 semesters and am looking forward to teaching on my own one day. Beyond academia, I will be offering classes, courses, webinars, and free social media resources to my community on specific sexuality topics.

Becoming a certified sexuality professional is HARD WORK! It takes 100+ of core knowledge and specialty training in educational hours, 12-18 months of supervision for both therapy and education, and also many hours in the field of practice. I am beyond proud for coming up on the end of this major mountain I have been climbing and spread my mental wealth with those around me!

Any advice for managing a team?

I have experience working as a clinical manager and client care coordinator for the past three years, and have had to do a lot of team building and rapport work!

One thing I did, especially through the pandemic, each week with my team was sound out “Weekly Wins” to help build our relationships and connections. Each week I would send out an email chain including a video of myself sharing with everyone how my life has been for the past week + work updates. Sending them an actual video of myself talking was so much more personable than just a simple email. I also was not afraid to be transparent, open and honest when things in my personal life weren’t so great. This allowed our team to lean on each other in hard times, and feel comfortable sharing in the work place more vulnerable parts of ourselves. Modeling for your team what being a REAL human is like, rather than just a powerhouse in the workforce is important to maintaining high morale because it allows for the workplace to be so much more than just work alone.

Do you think you’d choose a different profession or specialty if you were starting now?

If I could go back, I would absolutely choose the same profession. The field of sexuality is multi=dynamic and can look like many different types of roles and positions. It’s such a diverse field, and has SO much room for creativity. I wouldn’t change it for the world, and the best part is that it allows me to live out my passion in a very fun and rewarding way. I love helping people, and I love educating people, especially about sexuality. My favorite part of sexuality education is dispelling sexuality myths that people have believed for a long time. Reminding people that they are indeed normal and that our sexual selves are so diverse is my favorite liberation to be a part of.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @feelingtazz