The Book of Ecstasy

A bold and healing guide to rediscovering ecstasy through sex, spirit, and radical self-acceptance. From Barbara Carrellas—trailblazing author of the beloved Urban Tantra—comes The Book of Ecstasy, a fully revised and expanded edition of her cult classic Ecstasy Is Necessary. With warmth, clarity, and fierce compassion, Carrellas reclaims the word ecstasy as a deeply personal and accessible experience of joy, aliveness, and connection—not something reserved for mystics or perfect bodies, but available to anyone willing to listen to their own truth. This is a book for anyone who has ever felt left out of mainstream conversations about sex, pleasure, or identity—especially those seeking “something more” beyond the norm. Updated with vital new content on boundaries, consent, and neurodiversity, The Book of Ecstasy also includes an important new chapter on what happens when ecstasy feels impossible—or too overwhelming to manage. Carrellas writes for those who are healing from trauma, navigating illness, or mourning the loss of their old sexual selves, while also naming and normalizing powerful energetic and emotional states that are often misunderstood. Blending practical tools, spirituality, and decades of embodied experience, this book offers a fiercely inclusive and radically affirming path to ecstasy—for every body, in every season of life.