A book titled Reflections on the History of the Sex Addiction Field. was recently published.  The editors identified people who they decided had pivotal roles in the development of this field to each write a chapter highlighting their recollections of "the early days".  In this way people will have a way to understand some history they would not otherwise have an opportunity to know about.  I was honored to be one of the contributors so my short chapter is included in this collection.

I recently published an article to introduce a sexual health framework for categorizing chronically problematic sexual behavior. Soon after this, host Craig Perra asked to interview me for his podcast called The Mindful Habit.  (Craig is a great host who enthusiastically supports new ideas.)  I think it went pretty well for my first podcast.  The length gave me a chance to include a lot of explanations and historical context for the developmnet of this framework. 

Wisdom often seems simplistic. The initial response to a truly profound statement may be "I knew that already.” One example is “this moment is all you have”, a statement that is simple to acknowledge but not easy to remember since we constantly swing back and forth between the memories of the past and hopes and fears for the future.

I enjoy catchy phrases and sayings, especially when I hear one that I haven't stumbled across this far along the road (although I guess nothing is really "far" on a limitless journey).  Two phrases caught my ear recently, and I combined them in the title.  One is "mud moment" and the other is "Earth school".

In one scene from the movie "Casablanca"  a corrupt police captain pretends to be surprised that a crime has been committed and issues orders to "round up the usual suspects" instead of going after the person he knows is the real culprit.

Anxiety often starts with the words "What if.....?" Sometimes this can lead to a plan for dealing with possible situations that may occur in the future.  But since many fearful fantasies start with "what if?", a few basic tools can be very useful to keep in mind.

Are nice people always good? Are good people always nice?  It’s common to confuse these two concepts.

One piece of advice I sometimes give to my Atlanta psychotherapy and counseling clients may seem too simple to have lasting impact. However, just because something is simple doesn't mean that it's easy, and what I'm about to say can go a long way in helping you to overcome virtually any personal issue that is negatively impacting your life.

I've previously discussed the concept that "progress works backwards", meaning that growth toward a desired goal generally happens in incrementally improving stages. I find a lot of hope in the idea that what initially seems like "failure" is more productively viewed as useful feedback on the path to ultimate success. A related philosophy is the idea that "better is often better than best". This may initially seem to be a confusing and contradictory statement, but the idea is actually both simple and comforting.

We all at times feel sad, anxious, or angry. Although these are normal human emotions, they can cause difficulties for people who have a hard time regulating or managing them. (Regulating an emotion is the ability to modulate its intensity, much like adjusting a volume control, while managing an emotion is the ability to respond appropriately to its different intensities, much like a surfer who is able to ride many types of waves.)