Is My Porn Use Normal?

The question of whether any amount of porn use is acceptable is a divisive topic in our culture. It’s difficult to answer with any level of certainty. How much porn use is “safe” or “healthy” depends largely on a person’s individual circumstances, beliefs, and choices. A… Read More

Sex and Love Addiction: Help for Family Members

By: Jerry Law D.Min, MDAAC, CIP, Program Director of Family Education and Leadership Training for Meadows Behavioral Healthcare Dave and Sue were immediately hit with that sinking feeling in the gut, having received a call that their son was arrested for solicitation of a sex worker. Tammy found a suspicious… Read More

Love, Relationship, Sex Addiction: What’s the Difference?

By Dr. Stefanie Carnes, Ph.D., CSAT-S, Senior Fellow at The Meadows Women who seek treatment related to their out-of-control romantic and/or sexual behaviors are sometimes unsure about how to label their issues. They ask, “Am I a love addict, a relationship addict, or a sex addict?” Generally, their confusion stems… Read More

Healing the Roots of Women’s Sexual and Relational Struggles

Delicate Dynamics of Intimacy: The Effects of Early Relational Trauma

Tune or out of tune with those who bring us into this world from conception onwards. Our nervous systems are fashioned by nature to resonate with the nervous systems of others to achieve a sense of balance and connection (Schore, 1999), and these early interactions become the neurological templates upon… Read More

Relationships Can Be Difficult But There Is Help for Healing

Relationships are hard. There’s no getting around it. Put more than one person in the same place for long enough and you’re sure to have problems. It’s as certain as death, taxes, and computer problems. In his book Your Brain on Love, Dr. Stan Tatkin says that “there really is nothing more difficult on the planet than another person…nothing.” I tend to agree with him. My personal history with relationships and my work as working as a Marriage and Family Therapist seem to confirm that there’s nothing that will complicate your life more than another human. As much as we desire and need other people in our life, we simply cannot avoid the pain and conflict that inevitably comes when we enter a relationship. It’s a catch-22 of the human condition. Read More

The Meadows Launches Relationship Healing Center for Women

It’s often said that one can become addicted to anything that can numb emotional pain. Drugs, alcohol, food, gambling, and sex are all widely recognized for their addictive potential. Addiction to love and relationships, however, tends to be less well-recognized and understood. Women who struggle with love, relationship, and… Read More

Hooked on Love

By Jill Vermeire, MFT, CSAT-S, Willow House at The Meadows Program Director You might be a love addict if: You always fall for toxic or unavailable peopleYou would rather be in a bad relationship than be aloneYour life falls apart after every break up Who Doesn’t Want to Be in… Read More

How to (Finally) Find Love in the New Year

By Tracy Harder, MSC, LAC, Workshop Therapist and Andrea Sauceda Do you find yourself ending up in one painful, damaging, and disastrous relationship after another? Do you feel like a failure because you haven’t yet found true love? Do you want to know the secret to finding your soul mate?… Read More

Couples Recovering from Sex Addiction Can Reconnect

By: Dr. Georgia Fourlas, LCSW, LISAC, CSAT, Rio Retreat Center Lead Therapist There is an indescribable beauty in watching participants move into a deeper level of intimacy after struggling through the destruction of sexual addiction. Read More