Having a healthy sex life is an important part of a person's over all health. Whether you are looking for a good general practitioner, gynecologist, proctologist, or nurse practitioner it's always good to know you can ask your health professional honest questions about things that affect your sexuality.

The first thing you need to know is that doctors receive a limited amount (if any) training in sexuality. Consequently many doctors bring their personal morality and baggage into their office when it comes to sexuality. Some doctors refuse to "go there" and don't recognize sexuality as an important part of our personal health and the health of our relationships. While other doctors make it a point to study sexuality by reading all of the latest articles and subscribing to medical journals that address sex and health. It's up to you to sift through and find the doctors who recognize the correlations between health and sex. Here's how you can do that…

Get out your phone book or HMO/insurance listing and highlight the doctors that are available to you. If you are a female, you may want to request a female doctor as they will always have more understanding when it comes to female anatomy and experiences like birthing a child and being a mother. If you are gay, lesbian, bisexual, trans-gendered (GLBT) you may want to seek out a doctor or clinic that openly caters to marginalized individuals. GLBT clinics often employ doctors who are sexually sophisticated and open to individuals who live alternative lifestyles like sex workers, people who practice BDSM, people who have lots of tattoos or body piercings, etc…

Call every listing that may possibly suit your needs and ask to speak to the doctor you will be seeing on the phone before you set your appointment. Any good office will take your number and have the doctor call you.

When the doctor does call, ask straight out, "Are you a sex positive practitioner? I'd like to speak with you honestly about issues that might possibly be health related and that are effecting my sex life. Is that something you are willing to address with me?"

Then listen to the response you get from the doctor and use your instincts to decide if you would like to make an appointment with them.

Once you have found a doctor that looks like they may meet your needs, it's time for you to be a good patient. Before your appointment, sit down and write out a list of all of your questions and bring that list with you to your appointment. This way if your time with your doctor is rushed you can make sure to ask your doctor each and every question on your mind.

It's sometimes hard for an individual to remember that you live every day in your skin and this makes you ultimate authority of your own body. You are also the person paying that doctor for their services. You have to right to ask for what you need without shame. It takes courage to take these steps but I promise doing this will bring you better medical care and get your questions about your body and sexuality answered in a respectable manner.You deserve that.

As you look for a sex-positive doctor, it's also important to remember that doctors are human and they are not perfect. They are often way over worked and spend everyday listening to people's problems and complaints. It's a hard job. But there are good doctors out there who want to help you. You just need to do a little work to find them.

Get more here: Heath Care Without Shame: A Handbook for the Sexually Diverse and Their Caregivers by Charles Moser, Ph.D, M.D.