Renowned Sex Therapist and Media Personality, Ruth Westheimer, Dies at 96

Renowned sex therapist and media personality, Ruth Westheimer, known to many as “Dr. Ruth,” has passed away at the age of 96. Her publicist, Pierre Lehu, confirmed her death, which occurred at her Manhattan home on Friday. The cause of her death has not been disclosed.

Born in Germany in 1928, Westheimer was a Holocaust survivor who moved to the United States in 1956. She spent many years in academia before gaining public recognition in 1980 with her radio segment “Sexually Speaking” on New York’s WYNY radio network. Despite being in her 50s at the time, Westheimer quickly gained popularity for her candid advice on intimacy, helping to normalize discussions about sex for many Americans.

Westheimer’s advice was always delivered with a sense of cheerfulness and respect, and her playful catchphrase “Get some!” became a favorite among her listeners. She later transitioned to television, hosting “The Dr. Ruth Show,” which began in 1983. Over the years, she hosted numerous other TV programs and authored more than 45 books.

In 2021, New York Governor Kathy Hochul appointed Westheimer as the state’s honorary ambassador to loneliness. She is survived by her two children and four grandchildren.

Born Karola Ruth Siegel, Westheimer spent her early years in Germany as the only child of middle-class Jewish parents. At the age of 10, she saw her father being taken away by Nazis to the Dachau concentration camp. Her mother, in fear, sent Westheimer to Switzerland on the Kindertransport, a rescue train that transported Jewish children out of the country. Both of her parents died in the Holocaust, and she spent several years in a Swiss orphanage.

After World War II, Westheimer immigrated to British-controlled Mandatory Palestine (now Israel). She joined the Haganah Jewish Zionist paramilitary organization, which later became the Israel Defense Force. On her 20th birthday, she was seriously injured by an exploding shell during a mortar fire attack on Jerusalem.

Following her recovery, Westheimer moved to Paris to study psychology at the Sorbonne. At the age of 28, she immigrated to New York City, where she earned a master’s degree at The New School, working as a maid to pay her tuition. She later earned a doctorate from Columbia University.