Sex Science Social: Myths and Realities of Open Relationships

Open relationships are less stable.

You’re more likely to get an STI when you’re nonmonogamous.

People who are in open relationships are indecisive/constantly unsatisfied.

Every day we are bombarded with inaccurate, moralistic, and pseudo-scientific information and advice about sex and relationships. How do you figure out what’s true and what’s not?

One special evening each month, Dr. Zhana hosts an evening of geeking out over sexual science on a current, interesting, and useful topic followed by a BYOB social with like-minded folks at the gorgeous Hacienda Villa in Brooklyn, New York. She presents the research on each week’s topic, tells you all you need to know about the science, and holds a group discussion to hear your thoughts and questions. Don’t miss this awesome opportunity to take your sex education to the next level, ease your sexual concerns, have your sex questions answered, and meet like-minded friends!

Each month, she’ll cover a current, interesting, and useful topic based on research published in peer-reviewed, academic journals about anything from porn to polyamory. The topic for this month’s social is nonmonogamy:

Open relationships are much more common that most people think, and every single open relationship varies and can be approached in a different way. Based on popular portrayals in TV and film, open relationships often get a bad rep, and a lot of judgments are made about people who choose to be in an open relationship. They are seen as indecisive, promiscuous, and devious. In this Sex Science Social, we will explore these myths, realities, and the research surrounding them as well as your questions and opinions on the matter.

Dr. Zhana is a sex researcher, NYU professor, and writer with a passion for bringing accurate sex science to the modern world. She’s doing the work of sifting through the long, complicated research papers to bring you the key takeaways with real-world application. Her goal is to use evidence-based information to help you make sense of your own sexuality, clear up confusion, discuss things you don’t feel comfortable asking your friends about, and help you navigate the diverse and fascinating world of sex.

This is not a partnered event, so singles are welcome. EACH PERSON MUST RESERVE A TICKET.

In the spirit of accessibility and inclusivity, all tickets are reserved on a “pay what you can” basis. There are costs associated with producing this Social, and we want to use the money to produce really awesome, high-quality sex education events accessible to everybody who could benefit, so if you have the means, please contribute what you can. Suggested donation is $20-$40. Space is limited.

Consent and safety:

This is a clothes-on education event for discussion only. This event does not include touch of any kind. Self-care and consent are of the utmost importance, and none of the exercises are mandatory. Dr. Zhana will be there to support you in providing a safer space for you to participate.

Two volunteers are needed to help event preparation and cleanup (approximately one hour before doors open and up to one hour after event). Please email cory@drzhana.com if you’d like to help us out!

Snacks and drinks will be provided, BYOB (more sober, more fun). This event will be hosted at the sex-positive intentional community, Hacienda Villa, in Bushwick, Brooklyn. Address will be given upon ticket reservation.

Doors Open: 7:30pm

#legitsexscience Lecture and Q&A: 8:00pm -10:00pm

Presentation starts at 8pm SHARP. Please don’t be late

Social: 10:00pm – 11:00pm

See you there!

For those of you who can’t make it in person, we’ll be streaming the event live on Facebook Live on Dr. Zhana’s FB page [https://www.facebook.com/DrZhana]. If you can, we ask you to donate $10 via the “Watch Online” donation ticket option on Eventbrite (or whatever you can) for watching online, so that we can continue to make useful content accessible to as many people as possible!

Refund policy:

Our goal is to make hands-on adult sex education accessible to everyone! If you need to cancel your reservation, you have the following options:

1. If you’re canceling 48 hours or more in advance, use Eventbrite’s “request a refund” feature, and we will honor your refund.
2. If you are canceling less than 48 hours in advance, we are unable to process a refund. Because of sharing both the slides and the live broadcast (available at http://www.facebook.com/DrZhana), as well as the fact that all these events are donation-based, we have a no-refund policy. However, you are absolutely welcome to attend a future class for a minimum donation of $1 (or whatever you feel you can contribute).