About

Donavon Lerman (he/him)

My Lenses & Identities

I approach this work through specific lenses that shape how I understand and interpret somatic knowledge. I am:

• A white cisgender man
• Able-bodied
• Generation X
• Based in Los Angeles, California
• At least three generations in the United States
• Raised white Protestant
• High school education; did not attend college
• White lower class background, raised by a single mother with government assistance

These identities inform the way I process, understand, and communicate this information. I acknowledge that I still have blind spots around this material, and I'm committed to evolving my knowledge and teachings as I encounter new information, perspectives, and feedback. This work is ongoing, and I hold my current understanding with humility rather than certainty.

My Training & Direct Lineages

My somatic education has been shaped by multiple lineages and teachers since 2017. Key programs and certifications include:

Formal Certifications

• Certified Sexological Bodyworker and Somatic Sex Educator, Institute for the Study of Somatic Sex Education (ISSE) (2026)
• Studies in Sexological Bodywork, Institute of Somatic Sexology, with Uma Ayelet Furman, Deej Juventin, and Dr. Joseph Kramer (2021–2022)
• Wheel of Consent: Like a Pro, School of Consent, with Marcia Baczynski and Katie Spataro (2024)
• Wheel of Consent: Working With Groups, School of Consent, with Stella Topaz and Marcia Baczynski (2026)
• Polarity Teacher Training / Intimacy and Attraction Workshop™, Michaela Boehm (2017)
• Non Linear Movement Method Teacher Training, Michaela Boehm (2017)

Extended Studies & Immersions

• John Wineland: Advanced Practice Group, Valentine's Intensive, Embodied Masculine Leadership Training (EMLT) (2019–2020)
• Michaela Boehm & Steve James: Radical Intimacy intensives, Yoga of Deep Intimacy (2017–2025)
• Om Rupani: CTDM, BDSM Fundamentals & Scene Play Training, Tantra meets BDSM (2020–2022)
• Rahi Chun: The 3 Keys to Genital Dearmouring for Reclaiming and Expanding Pleasure (2025)
• Captain Snowden & Seneca Beth Miller: Together We Fly! Somatic Facilitation Skills for Sex Educators (2025)
• Back to the Body Method: Training Weekend with Cosmo Means, Cort Vox, and Pamela Madsen (2025)

Additional Teachers & Influences

I have also trained with and been influenced by: Justin Patrick Pierce & Londin Angel Winters (Yoga of Intimacy), Laurie Handlers, Orpheus Black, Jaiya Ma, and many others across personal growth, rope bondage, BDSM, tantra, men's work, and somatic movement practices.

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My Commitment to Accessibility, Equity & Justice

I am committed to creating a space that is accessible, equitable, and rooted in embodied respect for each person's autonomy and lived experience. Accessibility, for me, includes financial, emotional, physical, cultural, and nervous-system safety, and means meeting people where they are while honoring the pace and wisdom of their bodies. I understand my role as redistributing power back to the client, where consent, agency, and choice are not just professional standards but expressions of justice, and where your body is the authority. I am mindful of how privilege and systemic harm shape people's access to safety, pleasure, and belonging, and I hold this awareness with humility rather than certainty. My work is especially attentive to those carrying sexual shame, religious trauma, or marginalization around non-normative desires, offering a space where curiosity, self-trust, and pleasure can be reclaimed without pressure or performance. I know my perspective is limited by my upbringing, my privilege, and the many things I have yet to see, and I am continually learning about my blind spots and staying in relationship with feedback through inquiry and personal growth. At its core, I believe pleasure, agency, and embodied choice are not luxuries but birthrights, and creating access to them is both deeply personal and quietly radical.

For questions, feedback, or collaboration inquiries about this website, please visit the Contact page.