About Dr. Christina

Dr. Christina can help you:
CLARIFY intentions.
ENVISION what you want.
EMPOWER you to take the steps needed to
CREATE what you desire.

Dr Christina is an AASECT Certified Sex Therapist. Dr Christina is an active member of ISSWSH (International Society for the Study of Women’s Sexual Health), attending conferences and staying up to date on the latest treatments available in the field of women’s sexual medicine. This also allows her a robust multidisciplinary network of professionals to refer to for adjunctive care.

She digs diving into areas of vulnerability. That’s her jam.  She specialized in sexuality because while it can be tender or confusing, it’s also a beautiful, vibrant, exquisitely lovely and complex part of being human.

Dr McDowell has been in private practice for 22 years. Her formal education includes completion of her doctorate at Saybrook University in Integrative Health Psychology, an  MSW from KU and a BA in Psychology from Rockhurst University.

In her off time she enjoys traveling to see her two adult daughters, hiking, writing, walking her dog Shiva who is literally like the Dali-Lama with fur, and hanging out with friends talking about the most random things.

While it can be difficult, feel vulnerable, or even intimidating to see a sex therapist, the majority of my clients say they are surprised at how easy and organic the conversations start to feel. Together we figure things out that help you discover more about yourself; and not only that, move the needle forward so that you have solutions.

some of the things Dr. Christina can help you with:

• Painful sex

• Mismatched levels of desire

• Talking about sex

• Rediscovering passion in long-term relationships

• Erectile dysfunction

• Anorgasmia

• Low desire

• Figuring out your erotic style

• Opening up to kink

• Redesigning your relationship

• Exploration of gender and sexual identity

• Premature ejaculation

• Pelvic pain disorders

• Sex after or during cancer treatments

• Concerns about viewing of erotic materials

Stigma-free, affirming, affordable therapy for LGBTQIA+ Individuals

Do you live outside of the heteronormative-cisgender box?

Have you been to other supposed “LGBTQ-friendly” counselors who had no idea what you were talking about?

Could you use a safe space to process your feelings and assess your goals?

Are you seeking transition and need a letter for Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT)?

Or maybe you’re seeking relationship counseling from someone who understands where you’re coming from.

If you can relate to any of the above, then you’ve come to the right place.

No judgements. No biases. Just a strong support system with open ears.

Stigma, in any form, is an impediment to the well-being of those who experience it. Given the stressors that LGBT groups must confront, such as homophobia, prejudice, coming out, and discrimination, finding a therapist who is openly LGBT-friendly or who specializes in LGBT issues is crucial to your personal growth.

As an LGBTQIA+ therapist, I am committed to helping clients of all genders, sexual identities and expressions feel not only safe, but truly respected.

If you or someone you know is seeking help from an LGBTQIA+ therapist, contact me today. I would be happy to speak with you about how I can help.

Sex Therapy for Women:

Are you wishing you had sexual desire, but you don’t?

Or are you wanting more or a different kind of sex with your partner, but aren’t getting it?

Have you been asked, “Just tell me what you want.”, and you have trouble answering that question?

Maybe your body image, the shame around sex, or worrying you aren’t ‘doing it right’ is hitting the brakes?

Add on fatigue from parenting, working, and well, just trying to be a woman in today’s society……….your sexual desire has flatlined.

Or maybe you really never felt very connected with your sexuality.

I hear you. I see you. You are not alone. And you. Are. Not. Broken.

In all of my years of listening to women’s stories…….I will tell you this.

There is a way back to your body. It’s where you live. You can return home.

There is a pathway to your pleasure. The one that is uniquely yours.

These are a few of things I help women with:

• Painful Sex

• Low Sexual Desire

• Trouble identifying what you want in the bedroom

• Difficulty communicating what you want or like

• Vaginismus

• Getting your groove back after cancer or health challenges

• Sex and aging

• Developing pleasure practices

• Sex education (knowledge is empowerment!)

• Life changes/relationship changes

• and more………..

It’s important to take an integrated approach that incorporates the wisdom and reactions of both the mind and body. Dr Christina is well known for her ability to integrate science/research with new thought and embodiment practices that helps integrate one’s erotic and sexuality into a unified whole.

Sex Therapy for Men:

Have you been feeling frustrated sexually?

Perhaps there are some things about your own sexuality and behavior that you are having trouble understanding?

Do you wonder if you are enough, or good enough in bed?

Or maybe you are yearning for and miss having the kind of sex you would like?

Do you worry about your sexual ‘performance’?

Are you watching porn more that you want to be?

Have you tried talking to your partner(s) about sex, but feel that the conversations have gone no where? Or maybe you are the low desire partner, and don’t know why you don’t want sex.

I have had hundreds of conversations with men, and truly believe that male sexuality is misunderstood. So many myths in our culture and embedded in the patriarchy lend themselves to not giving men (or women for that matter), the true story about our bodies, sex, and our erotic lives.

There is a way to have a healthy sex life. And it can start here.

• I’ve helped hundreds of men with the following:

• Premature ejaculation

• Erectile dysfunction

• Porn

• Communicating with their partners

• Harnessing the power of the mind that can influence the body

• Sex and aging

• Sexual/’performance’ anxiety

• Understanding turn on’s and erotic preferences

• ……….and more……

Couples Therapy

Most of us grow up thinking that sex will be easy. The lack of sex and relationship education, or misinformation from multiple systems like the media, religion, or even family…..we get the impression that we are just supposed to know what to do.

“You’ll figure it out,” is what many of us hear. And believe.

This paradigm sets us up for struggle. It also creates myths that, without accurate information about our bodies and how our sexuality works, damage us and create shame, pain, and confusion.

There is another way.

Couples therapy and coaching can provide a pathway to clear communication, navigating differences, and exploring aspects in your relationship that you want to experience growth and expansion. Sex isn’t just what you do. It’s a part of who you are. And, it’s a place you go and a journey you take together.

Both therapy and coaching provide you with ways to authentically and clearly relate your feelings and desires, so that you can get your intimacy needs met in a healthy way.

Couples see me for:

• Different levels of sexual desire

• Feeling more emotionally and sexually connected

• Lack of communication around sex and intimacy

• Painful intercourse

• Coping with mental or physical health concerns of your partner

• Coping with cancer recovery or chronic illnesses as they relate to intimacy

• Sexless marriages

• Sex education

• Resentments

• Differences in values and beliefs around sexuality

• Partner’s sexual dysfunction

• Opening up or restructuring the relationship

• Body image concerns

• Depression and anxiety

• Addiction

• Trauma

• Stress and time management

• Loss of passion in the relationship

• Porn

• Increasing sexual satisfaction

• Having sex after an affair

Being able to share our sexual selves with someone we love is a beautiful thing. Dr Christina focuses on providing research-based education and creates a space where every partner can be heard and seen. Often specific homework is provided to help enhance pleasure and intimacy.