"I had not realized ... that extremely short exposures to a relatively simple computer program could induce powerful delusional thinking in quite normal people." Joseph Weizenbaum, creator of ELIZA

Naturally, I asked if I could pick her brain. In all my years as a sex therapist, she’s the most experienced person I’ve met when it comes to scheduled sex.

Have you been noticing a sense of dread humming in the background? Maybe you wake up already bracing for the news, or you find yourself second-guessing decisions that once felt simple, like going to the doctor, planning for your future, trusting what’s true. You’re not alone. What many of us are feeling right now has a name: institutional betrayal.

out now wherever books are sold.

Understanding what happens in our bodies when we do go through a separation from another person - or people - can create more room for healing. In some ways, it can allow us to give permission for recovery.

When we override, or repress, or ignore, some of the feelings we are having, the engagement that we have with our own regulation changes. We are not as attuned to what's actually happening, and that can lead to choices that might not feel the best for us outside of that one moment.

When a feeling of safety and security is missing, it is nearly impossible to be open to emotional connections from others. When considering some of the experiences that can lead to self-protective impulses, it is easy to see this for what it is - a remarkable adaptive quality.

What are radical acceptance and distress tolerance and why are they always coming up in session?

Body neutrality is a concept that became popularized in part as a reaction to the "Body Positive" movement. The body positivity movement began as part of fat-acceptance and fat-liberation efforts with the empowering idea that "all bodies are good bodies". As time went on, body positivity became used more frequently in a mainstream context that promoted a version of wellness represented by a slender, able, young, white body.

In polyvagal theory, developed by Dr. Stephen Porges, the process of neuroception refers to the ways our autonomic nervous systems observe what's happening inside our bodies, in the environment outside of our bodies, and in connection with people around our bodies. This observational process is happening at all times, and is primarily going on without thought from us - neuroception "happens below the realm of conscious thought and outside of awareness".

Here are 15 sex-positive podcasts about sex, relationships, attachment, and more.

Although many of us understand OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder) as an experience focused primarily around handwashing and aversion to germs, this Hollywood version of the OCD spectrum is not an inclusive representation of the unique ways that these thought patterns can look.

An aspect of OCD that is not as frequently discussed is the way these thoughts can impact sexuality.

CW: Sex Therapy and somatic experiences discussed below

What a superpower - the awareness of what's happening for us in our bodies and the skill of practicing non-judgmental presence with ourselves. With a compassionate and curious mindset, we have the opportunity to unlearn and heal.

We each have our own system of evaluating how things feel for us. After working with so many incredible people who feel like they aren't doing "enough", it's apparent that many of these internal systems are simply not working.

How do you know if you get to feel good about yourself at the end of the day? What standards are you judging yourself against?

Some of the decisions made over the past year might feel wildly different than what we might have expected, perhaps even risky. There is no denying that for most of us, our lives are different today than they were last year.

If you have experienced infertility, it’s so important to understand that you are not broken, and you are not alone. It is normal for stress to impact the connection we have with our sexuality, and it is common for difficult medical experiences to lead to a disconnect with our physical, somatic selves.