The episode satirized the sex scandal surrounding golf pro Tiger Woods, who had admitted to cheating on his wife Elin Nordegren with multiple partners. The Woods scandal had been one of the biggest media stories in the months since South Park's thirteenth season ended in November 2009. Series co-creator Matt Stone said the scandal provided so much material for satire that an entire season could have been dedicated to it, and the media storm surrounding Woods meant they had even less to worry about the delicacy of their parody. Stone said he was simultaneously fascinated and disgusted by Woods's public apology, so the writers were sure to include it in the episode. The script to "Sexual Healing" was not finished until after March 12, five days before the episode aired. This was in keeping with a continued practice from previous South Park seasons, in which Parker and Stone write and produce their episodes within the week before their broadcast dates in order to harness energy for the final product and keep the material fresh.. In an early image of the episode released to the press, Woods is seen at his apology press conference, with Cartman standing beside him. During the production of the episode, the writers decided to incorporate the Tiger Woods scenes as part of the video game that the boys, including Cartman, are playing.
