Episode 448: Life After Purity Culture
November 11, 2025 by Justin Lehmiller
For a lot of people who grew up in religious or conservative environments, they learned to fear sex and/or feel ashamed of. Purity culture teaches folks that their personal value is tied to their sexual choices: “good” people wait to have sex, while “bad” people don’t. In this episode, we’re going to talk about what it’s like to grow up in purity culture, how to move past it, and whether it’s possible to still hold onto your faith while letting go of purity culture.
My guest is Lauren Elise Rogers, a Certified Holistic Sexuality Educator and Embodied Intimacy & Relationship Coach. Lauren brings an empathetic and non-judgmental approach, offering practical tools that empower her clients to take ownership of their pleasure and grow in confidence and connection.
Some of the specific topics we explore in this episode include:
- How does purity culture shape attitudes toward sex, desire, and one’s own body?
- What are some ways to work through the shame that people often feel due to purity culture?
- How can you begin exploring your sexuality when you still have some internal conflicts about it?
- Is it possible to remain religious without adopting the sexual shame that often comes with it?
You can visit Lauren’s website to learn more about her work.
Got a sex question? Send me a podcast voicemail to have it answered on a future episode at speakpipe.com/sexandpsychology.
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Credits: Precision Podcasting (Podcast editing) and Shutterstock/Florian (Music). Image created with Canva; photos used with permission of guest.
Dr. Justin Lehmiller
Founder & Owner of Sex and PsychologyDr. Justin Lehmiller is a social psychologist and Research Fellow at The Kinsey Institute. He runs the Sex and Psychology blog and podcast and is author of the popular book Tell Me What You Want. Dr. Lehmiller is an award-winning educator, and a prolific researcher who has published more than 50 academic works.
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