Sex & Sexuality

Esther Perel on Working with Sexuality to Transform Relationships

And Busting Myths about Today’s Relationships

Observe relationship expert Esther Perel in action as she helps couples navigate infidelity, incompatibility, and the impacts of childhood trauma. Read more

The Myth of Low Sexual Desire

Updating Our Ideas about Erotic Well-Being

Great sex over the long term is not about how much you want sex; it’s about how much you like the sex you’re having. Read more

In Consultation July 1, 2023

Igniting the Spark

You Don’t Have to be a Sex Therapist to Treat Low Desire

You don't have to be a sex therapist to help your clients with diminished sexual desire. Read more

Tammy Nelson shares the journey of how she became a leading expert in the field of sex therapy and what she learned about couples and intimacy along the way. Read more

When One Partner Is Kinky...

Cracking Open the Conversation

Having an erotic craving that seems shocking to a partner doesn’t have to be a death knell for a relationship. Read more

Embracing Gender-Pleasure

How to Feel Yummy in Our Bodies

For trans folks, attuning to gender-pleasure allows them to resist harmful cultural scripts—but it can be a radical act of resistance for cis folks too. Read more

Daring to Dance

How Can We Help Women Take Pleasure?

Pleasure-taking connects women to their bodies, roots them in the present, and fosters resilience. What could be blocking today's women from such a seemingly... Read more

Sexual Intimacy and the Aging Client

A Conversation with Dr. Regina Koepp

Based on her article from our September/October issue, Dr. Regina Koepp talks about how to have "the talk" with your aging couple clients. Read more

Case Study March 22, 2022

“Be Yourself—But Don’t”

Mixed Messages from a Mother to Her Gay Son

What happens when loving mothers of gay sons unknowingly send them mixed messages about being themselves? Read more

Getting at the Heart of Affairs

How to Help Clients Examine Ethical Dilemmas

A seasoned therapist discusses the ethics around consulting with couples impacted by infidelity. Read more

Many people assume that an open relationship will cause jealousy in both partners. Historically, it has been assumed that pair-bonded individuals who are... Read more

The Therapy Beat September 15, 2021

Surrogate Partner Therapy

Crossing Lines or Expanding Boundaries?

The debate around surrogate partner therapy. Read more

Sex Post-Covid

Healing the Rifts

Lockdown provoked a wide range of emotions among partnered people, including an increase in anxiety, fear, loneliness, boredom and frustration. It’s been... Read more

In Consultation May 19, 2021

Gender-Affirmative Therapy for Kids

What Parents Need to Know

Supporting transgender children doesn’t always mean rushing toward medical intervention. Read more

Case Study December 30, 2020

Gender-Affirmative Therapy

Helping Transgender Clients Begin Their Journey

The key elements of gender-affirmative therapy for clients who are medically or socially transitioning. Read more

Symposium Highlight July 29, 2020

VIDEO: The Dance of Healthy Connection

Sue Johnson on EFT and Attachment Theory

What does Attachment Theory tell us? That emotion is the most powerful force in the therapy room, says couples therapist Sue Johnson, developer of Emotionally... Read more

Broken Mirrors

From Storytelling 2020

When we can acknowledge the dark forces that reside within us. Read more

In Consultation May 1, 2020

Dating at Midlife

A Road Map for Newly Single Clients

Helping clients who find themselves single again in midlife navigate a new world of dating. Read more

Symposium Highlight April 1, 2020

VIDEO: Attachment Theory in 9 Minutes

Sue Johnson Breaks Down the Core Tenets

Perhaps now more than ever, maintaining strong relationships is crucial to our emotional well-being. In this video clip from the 2020 Virtual Symposium, EFT... Read more

VIDEO: Doing Your Best Work with LGBTQ Clients

The Myth of Sex Addiction, Common Mistakes, and More

Is the sex addiction model doing more harm than good? What's the difference between sexual orientation and gender identity? And what are the most common... Read more

Symposium Highlight January 15, 2020

Couples therapist Susan Johnson explains how, by establishing a "secure base," to restore both an emotional and physical spark in a relationship. Read more

Symposium Highlight October 23, 2019

Our relational lives are undergoing a radical shift, says couples therapist Esther Perel, bestselling author of The State of Affairs and Mating in Captivity... Read more

After the Affair

Two Case Studies Illustrate the Opportunities Moving Forward

This article first appeared in the May/June 1989 issue. Back in the 1950s, Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher, Hollywood’s perfect young couple, shocked... Read more

Finding the Path Back

Couples Therapy After an Affair

Editor’s Note: This blog is excerpted from a piece that originally appeared in our September/October 1994 issue, Parents Under Siege. Do you think its... Read more

When Straight Men Have Sex with Men

Understanding the Difference Between Sexual Identity, Preference, and Fantasy

When a male client in a heterosexual relationship confesses that he has sex with men, the therapist must understand he's not necessarily closeted. Read more

VIDEO: What Therapists Need to Know About Working with LGBTQ+ Clients

How We Think About Gender and Sexuality is Changing at "Warp Speed"

Today’s LGBTQ+ community has exploded in size, and therapists working in progressive, urban communities will likely see clients whose approach to sex... Read more

Symposium Highlight May 6, 2019

What Greg Taught Me

From Symposium Storytelling Evening 2019

"Even though I’d been out as a gay man for decades, I still felt disgust at my erotic interests. Although several therapists over the years had told me I... Read more

Fully Present Sex

How Mindfulness Can Heighten Desire, Arousal, and Satisfaction

When sex becomes fraught or painful, fear and worries can overtake this important source of pleasure. But clinicians and clients are embracing a nonmedical... Read more

VIDEO: Breaking Rigid Thinking Around Intimacy

A Three-Part Solution for Couples Therapy

Sex therapist Suzanne Iasenza talks about a three-part process that helps couples free themselves from the rigid narratives about sex that keep them from... Read more

VIDEO: The 3 Keys to Helping Clients Navigate Sexual Problems

You Don't Need to Be an Expert to Help Clients Get "Dumb and Happy"

Sex and relationship therapist Stephen Snyder talks with Psychotherapy Networker's Lauren Dockett about three simple things to do when you find yourself... Read more