The Love Drive with Shaun Galanos

This is part 2 of Making Space For Someone New. If you didn't listen to last weeks episode, I recommend you do to get the full story. On today's episode, Samantha and I discuss ways for her to meet new people, to expand her dating pool, and what would happen if she posted pictures of herself with her wheelchair on dating sites. And then, I check back in with Samantha, some three months later to ge...

Samantha is in love with a man who in many ways meets her needs. But in a few very fundamental ways, he does not. Samantha struggles with meeting new people, made more challenging by the fact that she has a visible disability. Her needing to use a wheelchair makes it harder for her to meet new people. Does she stay with a person who partially meets her needs, or jumps into the dating scene knowing...

Erica met her then boyfriend at the age of 19 years old. She walked into Chemistry 101 and was immediately smitten by the tall, quiet, hunk of a man. She was also drawn to a very specific part of his anatomy that was quite hard to miss. Erica and I talk about her on again off again relationship with Eric (that's right. Meet Erica and Eric) and the particular way in which they slowly opened up thei...

We can't flirt and seduce like we use to. The landscape is changing and what we used to get away with no longer works. It's time to step up our seduction game, but how are we supposed to know what works when different people react to different approaches. Thank goodness for people like Dr. Alison Ash. She's a sex and intimacy coach, educator, and the founder of TurnON.love. She's the host of a fan...

What would it look like if we approached food, eating, and how we view our bodies not with restriction, fear, and shame, but rather with love and compassion? Lucky for us, someone can show us how.  Jenna Hollenstein , MS, RDN, CDN is a non-diet dietitian, meditation teacher, and the author of the book: Eat to Love - A Mindful Guide to Transforming Your Relationship with Food, Body, and Life. I don...

Emilie Guimond Bélanger  is a sex coach, founder of the Institute of Desire in Montreal, and a teacher of Orgasmic Meditation. She grew up having painful intercourse and got fed up with the lack of pleasurable sensation. At one point, decided to do something about it.  She discovered Orgasmic Meditation, learned from some of the best teachers, and now makes it her life's work to help women reconne...

Coco McKenzi  is an inspirational speaker, sexual assault survivor, and transformational coach who has helped hundreds of women over the last 3 years live their most radiant lives after sexual abuse. When Coco was assaulted, she desperately tried to find resources that could help her make sense of what had happened, and how to move forward. Overwhelmed with resources that were hard to understand,...

The woman I'm speaking to today doesn't like the way her partner touches her, nor does she like to give the kind of touch that he wants. Are they doomed to have a mismatch in what they want, or is there a way to invite curiosity into the bedroom? Together, we explore how bringing curiosity, compassion, and respect to your conversation about what you need in bed can lead to greater connection and c...

Silvy Khoucasian is a relationship coach with a passion for helping individuals and couples have healthier relationships with themselves and others. She also creates a ton of beautiful content on Instagram, a lot of it centering on boundaries and attachment styles. Today, we deep dive on boundaries - what they are, how to set them, and what to do when they're being violated.  What you'll learn (or...

Galen Erickson is a men's relationship coach and facilitates workshops and men's circles in Seattle, WA. We discuss what it means to be a man in today's world, how traditional toxic masculinity and a more sensitive, heart-centric version of masculinity are at odds with each other, and what men can do to learn how to connect to their emotions more fully.  What you'll learn (or why you should care):...

Dr. Alexandra Solomon is a love nerd, there's no denying it. She's dedicated her life to the pursuit of learning about love and teaching those around her how to love. She's a clinical psychologist, a professor who teaches the Marriage 101 class at Northwestern University, the author of my new favorite book, Loving Bravely, and so much more. This is a lovely and sincere conversation about vulnerabi...

Is the juice worth the squeeze? Are you putting work into a relationship that is no longer serving you? Are you trying to find a way to make something work that perhaps will never work?  This episode might be for you.  If you'd like some Free Love Advice of your own, book yourself on my calendar and let's record a podcast together.  www.thelovedrive.com/freeloveadvice

This episode is for all the lovebirds who rebel against Valentine's Day. The single ones, the ones in relationships, the ones coming off massive heartbreaks, and every little love bird in between. We don't need a day to declare our love for each other, we choose to do it as much as possible and to as many people as possible.  These are real love letters, submitted by listeners of The Love Drive. I...

Elise Carr, MA is the host of the Sacred Guidance with Stella Muse podcast and a mentor and guide who helps people find their true purpose in life. If this sounds too esoteric for you, don't let this stop you from listening to this episode. If you're struggling with the same old habits and patterns that have been holding you back this conversation is the loving kick in the pants pep talk that you...

Ashley Miller, MFT  is a psychotherapist and addiction specialist practicing in San Francisco, CA. She shares with us client stories, and some of her personal stories when it comes to dealing with conflict in her relationships.  When you're angry at your partner, it can take all the patience and strength in the world to take a step back from anger and learn how to lead with vulnerability instead. ...

Ivy Kwong  is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, and Relationship Coach specializing in self-love and recovering from codependency.  Ivy shares with us how growing up in a family with unhealthy boundaries and a limited ability to express emotions led to her struggle with codependency in adulthood. Ivy is incredibly generous with her transparency on the effects of codependency in her life, a...

We often give massage to receive, but Shai is a firm believer that you can get as much joy from giving a massage as you can from receiving one. His new best-selling book, The Joy of Giving Massage, is all about maximizing the pleasure you get from giving a great massage. Massage is no longer what you need to get through in order to get yours. It's a practice to meditate, connect with yourself, and...

Are you touched starved? Do you wish you could change something about your body? Are you looking for 'The One' at the expense of building intimacy with others, and yourself? Then you'll want to tune in.  Today, I bring you my favorite snippets of conversation from the top three most downloaded episodes of 2018. Solomon Krueger discusses the power of platonic touch, Meghan Tonjes talks about what i...

Are you dating someone who's not quite right for you? Do they satisfy your needs in one way but not in the way that's important to you? Well, I would say, "join the club". This episode is for everyone who's dating someone that can't really give them what they're looking for. If you'd like your very own free love advice, head over to thelovedrive.com/freeloveadvice  to find out how I can help. 

Spooning, cuddling, massage, body-stacking, playing like a bunch of kittens, stroking in a non-sexual way, dancing with or without contact,  extended eye-gazing. These are just a few of the types of platonic touch that you can experience at Cozy, a heart-centric cuddle-event hosted by Solomon Krueger in Montreal.  I've been to three of these parties and I have enjoyed each more than the last. Ther...

A woman wants to know if she should leave her husband of 10 years. She also gets painfully vulnerable about hating her body. We talk about knowing when it's time to leave your partner, why we fall into negative self-talk, how we can best accept the body that we have even though we don't like the way it looks. This is a tender and heart-warming conversation about being human. I think you're going t...

Public speaking may be our number one conscious fear but Dr. Jordana Jacobs, a clinical psychologist in NYC, believes that the fear of dying, or death anxiety, is indeed what we're most afraid of.  What does death awareness mean exactly? Simply put, the more we're conscious of the impermanence of everything in life, the more present we can be, and the deeper we can love. We more we accept death, t...

Meghan Tonjes is (self-proclaimed)Fat, Blessed, and Thriving. She's a musician, podcaster, and YouTuber, but she's also a hilarious, witty, badass, charming, and hard-working woman that has a lot of wisdom to share when it comes to loving one's own body.  She's been producing YouTube videos for as long as YouTube has been around and knows a few things about the mean things people can say about you...

I spoke with a woman that has been seeing both men for over a year without either of them knowing anything about the other. She wanted help figuring out who she should choose. No pressure.  Then I spoke with a man trying to forgive his ex for cheating on him, and then another conversation with a young woman who is stuck in an abusive relationship.  All of this on my birthday. Thank you, everyone!...

It can be hard to find out about play parties (sex parties) if you're not 'in the know'. Good thing for you, Lila Donnolo is very much 'in the know'. She lives in a sex-positive intentional community in Brooklyn called Hacienda House. We discuss the ins and outs of living in such a community, how to get invited to play parties, some of the etiquette required to fully enjoy yourself, and more. Lila...