Full Course Description

Integrative Sex & Couples Therapy: Innovative Clinical Interventions to Treat Relationship & Desire Issues in the New Era of Sexuality in Psychotherapy

Program Information

Objectives

Perform a clinical assessment to determine the cause of pleasure denial to inform the clinician’s choice of treatment interventions.
Analyze the effects of separation, betrayal, trust and identity issues on eroticism in clients’ sexual partnerships as it relates to clinical practice.
Utilize clinical interventions, such as pleasure mapping and desire awareness, to treat desire issues such as pleasure resistance, pleasure avoidance and pleasure rejection.
Appraise the phases of treatment for erotic recovery and develop a treatment plan for women, both individually and in couple’s treatment, for sexless marriage and desire issues.
Create an attachment versus individualization plan as a treatment intervention to aid clients in developing relational skills and strengthening sexual intimacy and wellness.
Distinguish the clinical implications of the stages of integration and the four areas of sexuality that have meaning for women around the narrative of eroticism.

Outline

Sexuality: The New Model of What’s Normal

Challenges of sex therapy & couples therapy
How the treatment of women has changed
What are you afraid clients will bring up?
Target multiple levels of sexuality
Cultural definitions of sexual pathology & wellness
Model of sexual wellness

Address Sexual & Relational Needs

Why we choose partners with different needs
Clusters of needs & their treatment implications
The different types of erotic needs
How relationship phases affect erotic needs
Strategies to address countertransference

Desire Discrepancies: Interventions for the Most Common Issue Couples Face

The cycle of arousal & its clinical impact
The prerequisite of arousal
Address relational avoidance
How to renew & rekindle desire

Pleasure Disorders & Their Treatment

Pleasure vs. performance
Types of pleasure denial
Empower women to have pleasure
Interventions for pleasure denial

Integration: A Treatment Model

The Relationship Trauma Triangle

Why the current therapy model isn’t working
How to avoid being drawn into conflicts
Separation, betrayal, trust & identity
The integration model

Interventions for Each Phase of Treatment

Elicit sexual narratives
Teach a focus on appreciation
Integrate the four areas of sexual meaning
Build upon pleasure & connection

The Crisis Phase of Treatment

Assess for relationship & individual risk
Delay the “stay or go” decision
Teach relationship skills
Tools for clients to deal with intense affect
Focus on decreasing fatigue & pressure

Strategies for the Insight Phase

Explore the “how did we get here?”
Address attachment issues
Create an attachment vs. individuation plan
Exercises for couples
Appreciate & expand on what’s working

The Vision Phase of Treatment

Erotic recovery
Focus on fantasy & pleasure
6 weeks of sex dates protocol
Create a new monogamy agreement
Limitations of the research & potential risks

Target Audience

Psychologists
Social Workers
Counselors
Marriage and Family Therapists
Sex Educators and Therapists
Addiction Professionals
Nurses

Copyright : 02/25/2020

Sex, Desire & Attachment with Emily Nagoski, Ph.D.: New Science & Strategies to Transform Couples’ Sex Lives

Program Information

Objectives

Evaluate the dual control model of sexual response.
Determine the differences between spontaneous and responsive desire among couples.
Analyze arousal non-concordance as it relates to sexual satisfaction.
Assess the relationship between mindfulness practices and enhanced physical sensation.
Investigate sexual myths to resolve the internal struggles of “am I normal?”
Determine ways to address and resolve difficult feelings to strengthen couples’ relationships and rekindle desire.

Outline

Desire & the Brain

Spontaneous vs. responsive desire
What to do when there’s a mismatch
Wanting vs. liking vs. learning
Limitations of the research & potential risks

The Model of Sexual Response

The brain’s sexual accelerator
What hits the brakes?
How the dual model influences sexual styles
Context sensitivity of pleasure perceptions
Help clients identify what influences their pleasure

Address Arousal Discrepancies

Address the myth of body response
The relationship between body & desire
Consent in the age of #metoo & #timesup
What actually predicts sexual satisfaction

Attachment & Trauma

The dark side of attachment
Attachment style & sex-life satisfaction
Self-compassion for sexual trauma survivors
Skills for sexual trauma survivors to release blame

Strategies to Enhance Sexual Desire

Help clients identify their most pleasure-positive context
Leverage the structure of sensations in the nervous system
Expand client understanding of pleasure
Mindfulness practices to enhance sensation
Pain’s role in sexual desire & relationship satisfaction

Enhance Couples’ Sexual Well-Being

Desire, frequency & what a “good sex life” looks like
Delve into the precise nature & role of trust in an erotic connection
Explore initiation style & communication skills
Excavate myths about gender roles & sexual “shoulds”
Address other sexual myths

Sexual Desire in Long-Term Relationships

Predictors of a strong, lasting sexual connection
“Show up to the party” metaphor
The foundation of a strong sexual connection
Address difficult feelings & space between partners

Target Audience

Psychologists
Social Workers
Counselors
Marriage & Family Therapists
Sex Educators and Therapists
Addiction Professionals
Nurses