Rouse Relational Wellness 2025 Year in Review: Building Connection in a Hard Year

Written By David Khalili

Let's be real. 2025 has been rough. Like, really rough.

Between the political turmoil, ongoing uncertainty, and collective exhaustion that seems to settle heavier with each passing month, many of us are feeling stretched thin. If you've found yourself doomscrolling at 2am, canceling plans because you just can't people today, or wondering if you have the energy for one more hard thing, you're not alone.

And yet, here we are. Still showing up. Still fighting the good fight. Still finding pockets of joy, pleasure, and connection amid the chaos.

That tension between the weight of the world and our need for lightness is exactly why we do this work at Rouse. It's why reducing shame and anxiety around sex and relationships matters so much, especially now. Because reserving your energy for what truly matters means letting go of the bullshit that doesn't serve you, whether that's internalized shame about your desires, anxiety about communicating your needs, or judgment about how you love.

So before we dive into what we accomplished this year, I want to acknowledge something important: taking pleasure seriously is an act of resistance. Whether it's claiming your authentic sexual identity, building relationships that actually work for you, or simply allowing yourself moments of joy without guilt, these aren't frivolous luxuries. They're survival strategies. They're how we stay human when the world feels like it's burning.

And sometimes? They're just plain hedonism. And that's okay too.

What We Built Together in 2025

This year at Rouse wasn't about grand reinventions. It was about showing up consistently, creating spaces for healing and learning, and staying connected to our mission: shame less, love more. Here's how that played out.

The Humans Making It Happen

Look, I can talk about workshops and blogs all day, but none of this work happens without an incredible team of humans who show up every single day to hold space for some of the most vulnerable conversations people will ever have. And I need to take a moment to acknowledge them because they're the actual heart of Rouse.

Rosalie, our Client Care Coordinator and intimacy coach, is often the first voice people hear when they're nervous about reaching out for help. She makes that scary first step feel a little less terrifying. Our newly licensed providers like Emerald Aueyong, LMFT LPCC, are stepping into their full power as clinicians while bringing fresh perspectives and deep cultural nuances to our practice. Then there are our die-hard providers like Colin Fyfe, LMFT and Marjorie Boggs Vazquez, LMFT, who've been with us through thick and thin, building trust with their clients week after week and contributing their expertise to our community through workshops and trainings. And Ryan Noble, LMFT, who not only sees clients but also handles our compliance review and provides clinical supervision, ensuring that we're operating with integrity and that our newer clinicians have the support they need to grow. Stephanie Olano, LMFT also joined as a supervisor to support and guide our associates with their clinical work. We also welcomed wonderful associate therapists Phoenix Jackson, AMFT, CSE, Dana Lanier, AMFT & Helen Everbach, AMFT, CSE. Outside of the office we have Tray Smith busting his behind to help create wonderful community events for our clients and colleagues. 

Every single person on this team is doing the daily work of chipping away at shame, one session at a time. Their clients get direct support, sure, but the ripple effects go so much further. When someone learns to communicate about sex without apology in therapy, they take that skill into their relationships, their friend groups, their communities. When someone heals from relational trauma and learns to trust again, they change the pattern for future connections. That's the real work. That's what this team does every damn day, and I'm grateful as hell for each of them.

Our Most-Read Blogs

You all really showed up for our educational content this year. Our top three blogs addressed specific, practical concerns about sexuality and relationships:

  1. How to Safely Explore Impact Play: A Guide to Floggers, Paddles, Hands and More - Because curiosity about kink deserves thoughtful, shame-free information

  2. Three Types of Orgasms You Should Know - Expanding definitions of pleasure beyond the narrow scripts we've been handed

  3. Protest Behaviors in Attachment Styles - Understanding why we do what we do in relationships

What strikes me about these top posts is that they represent the core of what we're about: demystifying topics that carry unnecessary shame, providing concrete tools for better relationships, and helping folks understand themselves more deeply.

Workshops That Brought Us Together

We hosted 11 public workshops this year, each designed to reduce shame and build community around topics that too often stay hidden in the shadows:

Learning from Experts:

Responding to the Moment:

  • "What Now? Political Anxiety and Anger Workshop" - Because we couldn't not address the elephant in the room

  • "Womb of Their Own" - Supporting reproductive health and autonomy for trans communities

Professional Development:

Men's Work:

  • "Breaking the Silence: Men's Mental Health, Sexuality, and Anxiety"

  • Our third "Anxiously Intimate Men's Retreat"

These workshops weren't just about sharing information. They were about creating spaces where people could show up as themselves, ask the questions they've been too afraid to ask, and recognize that their experiences aren't weird or broken - they're human.

Deepening Our Team's Expertise

Our team participated in nine internal trainings this year, continuing our commitment to providing culturally responsive, trauma-informed, and specialized care:

Because shame-free care requires providers who are constantly learning, unlearning, and expanding their understanding of human sexuality and relationships.

Showing Up in Community

We didn't just stay in our therapy rooms. We got out there:

Monthly Presence:

  • Castro Night Markets from March through November alongside SF Counseling Collective

Networking and Community Building:

  • Post-CAMFT Networking Mixer in May

  • Sex Therapist and Intimacy Pros Mixers at queer-owned venues like The White Horse in Oakland (September) and Casements in San Francisco (December)

These gatherings matter because reducing shame isn't just individual work. It's collective. It's about building networks of providers who can support each other and creating visible, affirming spaces in our communities.

Supporting Causes We Believe In

We put our money and time where our values are, supporting:

The Why Behind the Work

Here's the thing about all these workshops, blogs, trainings, and events: none of them exist in isolation. They're all part of our larger mission to reduce shame and improve relationships. Every single one.

When we teach about impact play, we're not just talking about floggers. We're talking about trust, communication, and the radical act of claiming your desires without apology.

When we explore attachment styles, we're not just categorizing behavior. We're helping people understand their patterns so they can choose differently.

When we create spaces for men to talk about anxiety and sexuality, we're challenging the toxic messages that say men shouldn't have feelings or need support.

It's all connected. And it all matters.

A Practice for Right Now

I'm going to ask something of you. Before you close this tab and move on to the next thing on your to-do list, take three minutes for a gratitude practice.

Not the performative Instagram kind. The real kind. The kind that helps you remember why you're still fighting.

Grab whatever you're writing with - phone notes, journal, napkin - and jot down:

  • Three things you're genuinely grateful for from this year (they can be tiny)

  • Two ways you showed up for yourself or someone you love

  • One thing you're looking forward to, even if it's small

Gratitude isn't about toxic positivity or pretending everything is fine. It's about finding the threads of goodness that keep us tethered when things get dark. It's about recognizing that pleasure, joy, and connection aren't frivolous - they're essential.

Looking Ahead

2025 taught us that we can show up consistently even when things are hard. That community matters. That shame thrives in silence and withers in the light. That taking pleasure seriously isn't selfish - it's survival.

We're carrying that forward into 2026.

If you've been part of our community this year - whether you attended a workshop, read a blog, came to therapy, or just followed along on social media - thank you. Seriously. This work only happens because people like you are willing to do the hard, beautiful work of loving more authentically and shaming less.

Here's to more of that in the year ahead.

Want to learn more about our services?

Rouse Relational Wellness is a sex and relationship wellness center featuring sex-positive, trauma-informed therapy for individuals and relationships. We also offer couples intensives, professional consultations, and workshops. All of our services are available online and our office is located in the Castro district of San Francisco, California.

Learn more about our services or book a free consultation.

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Hearts and handbags,

David F Khalili, LMFT

Bio: David F Khalili, LMFT is a sex therapist and couples therapist in the San Francisco Bay Area, and founder of Rouse Relational Wellness and Rouse Academy. He works with individuals and relationships via telehealth focusing on sex and anxiety, multiheritage couples, and burnout. David enjoys spending time with his fam, watching trash TV, and exploring his newfound "outdoorsy" self.

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David Khalili

https://www.davidfkhalili.com/
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