Vaping, which is the practice of inhaling the vapor produced by an electronic cigarette (e-cigarette), was declared an epidemic in youth by the U.S. Surgeon General in December 2018. In my therapy practice, which includes specializing in children and adolescents, I have witnessed a stark rise in this behavior, especially among junior high-aged students (i.e.,......
Allow my children to fail? Huh? How does that make sense? Why would I not protect my children from failure? If I don’t, my children may feel sad or left out or not good enough. His or her self-esteem will be damaged. Isn’t it my job as a parent to make sure my children are......
There are a lot of hot topics in the mental health arena right now. People love to talk about self-empowerment, ending toxic relationships, and mindful meditation practices. These are valuable talking points with plenty of helpful information to be gleaned. But there is another, less “hot” topic that we need to discuss. The T word.......
In the movie Karate Kid we fondly recall the “Kid” seeking karate lessons from Mr. Miyagi, who has the Kid doing a number of house chores until he’s thoroughly annoyed and announces, “I learned plenty!? I learned how to sand your decks, wax your car, paint your house, paint your fence. I learned plenty!” Finally,......
It’s 2:00 pm on the hottest day of the year and I am watching the men lay brick in the full sun, building a second story on the building next door. As I watch them labor and sweat, I am reminded, in this Pride Month, that the rights and freedoms I enjoy today—being able to......
We have all heard “If you don’t fully love yourself, how can you love someone else?” As someone who is from Poland, a woman of faith, and life-long member of the Gothic sub-culture, I have been told for a large part of my life that I am odd and too different. I have experienced stereotyping,......
Embracing Sex Addiction The essence of recovery is embracing and growing from our mistakes and missteps rather than avoiding pain and discomfort. My recovery from sex addiction started when I was 28. I was fortunate to participate in a group my father organized consisting of therapists and clergy. It was during one of these meetings a......
In working with couples where sex addiction has blown up the trust and emotional safety in a relationship, recovery and healing can be an extremely long road. For individuals who discover that the person they love most in the world—and who are likewise supposed to love them back—has betrayed them through sexual acting out, it......
Intimacy. When I talk about this concept with clients, the common assumption is that I’m talking about sex. While sex, ideally, will involve intimacy, many of the people I work with have rarely experienced intimacy and sex together. In fact, many people come to realize they haven’t experienced intimacy anywhere in their lives. For the......
As a therapist at Psychological Counseling Services (PCS) in Scottsdale, I see clients from all over the country who share the ineffective practice of numbing emotional pain with sex addiction. They come to PCS for our Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP), and at intake report a common theme – I don’t like what I’m doing, but......
