As sexual assault controversies continue to make headlines, UF students can learn more about the positive side of sex Tuesday.
David Deida, a best-selling author on the relationship between sex and spirituality, will speak at UF’s Health Professions, Nursing and Pharmacy Auditorium at 7 p.m. The presentation is free and open to the public, and it is co-sponsored by UF’s College of Nursing.
Deida is a UF theoretical psychobiology graduate and is speaking for free.
“I feel so much gratitude for the University of Florida,” he said. “I just feel like giving back.”
Deida plans to start his presentation with a brief talk but to open the floor to questions and let the discussion unfold.
Mary Rockwood Lane, an associate professor at UF’s College of Nursing and co-founder of the Shands Arts in Medicine program, helped set up the presentation. She said she hopes to expose as many UF students as possible to their sexuality and its sacred role in their lives.
She said the goal is to “create a forum where students can explore the myths of sexuality, the judgments around sexuality and the way they perceive their sexuality as something good or bad.”
Deida started at UF at 16. He said he spent seven years taking every course he could.
“It was like a playground of learning for me,” he said.
He ultimately earned an undergraduate degree in theoretical psychobiology.
He went on to study at the University of California Medical School, San Diego, for an M.D. and Ph.D., but Deida said he realized he did not want to work with sick people. Just before he turned in his thesis to graduate with his dual degree, Deida dropped out to become a full-time author.
Deida has written multiple books that have been published in more than 25 languages. He has taught at institutions in California, Boston and France.
He said he was always interested in learning about human consciousness, which strives to answer questions like, “Who are we?” He found that sexuality played a large role in finding the answers.
The goal for the presentation is to show participants they can have much deeper sexuality with deeper connections.
“Sexuality is so common today, like on TV and on the Internet,” he said. “I think almost everybody misses depth in sexuality.”
Besides having more profound connections, Deida said practicing a spiritual sexuality can help minds grow and become more clear.
“My main interest is in helping people wake up to their own depths,” he said.
[A version of this story ran on page 4 on 4/6/2015 under the headline “UF alumnus to give sex and spirituality talk on Tuesday”]
