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Love and Sex in the Time of Corona

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Dating can be tricky in the best of times. Add in a pandemic, and the challenges multiply.  (Sanja Radin/iStock)

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In Love & Immunocompromised

The California Report’s Asal Ehsanipour brings us a personal story about what it’s like to keep a romance alive, when you’re forced apart. Her boyfriend has a health condition that suppresses his immune system. Asal also happens to live with a UCSF nurse on the frontlines of San Francisco’s fight against COVID-19. There’s a chance Asal’s roommate could be bringing the virus home. So Asal made the decision to leave her apartment and self-quarantine at her parents’ house, isolated from everyone, in order to ensure that she can see her boyfriend again without the fear of infecting him.

Notes From the Love and Sex Beat

KQED, the station where The California Report is produced, has received nearly two thousand questions from our listeners asking about coronavirus. Some of them include things like “is it OK to kiss or have sex with your spouse?” and “is sex or dating still a viable and safe thing to do during a pandemic?” To help us answer some of those questions, we turn to Nastia Voynovskaya, KQED’s Associate Arts and Culture Editor. She’s been reporting on love and romance in the time of COVID-19.

You Can't Do Bondage Over Zoom. Here's How a Pro Dominatrix Works From Home

An Li has worked full time as a professional dominatrix in Los Angeles for the last six years. In-person appointments make up most of her income, and she says that’s pretty typical in her line of sex work. But in the age of coronavirus, all that income is gone. The California Report’s Ariella Markowitz checked in with An Li to see how she’s now connecting with clients online.

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