Awakenings Counseling for Couples and Sex Therapy

09/09/2023

Our Clinical Manager Caroline Landen - Certified EFT Therapist!!!

07/14/2023

If you need couples therapy, we can help! 919-845-8400

06/11/2023

06/07/2023

Summer is here! ENJOY!

12/16/2022

Jealousy is challenging to feel. "I should trust my partner; I should be more confident. Even I don’t know what to do with my insecurity - it makes me feel ashamed." (listen: https://bit.ly/3j5QJZu)

George suggests that jealousy is data from the body. It’s a signal that you feel vulnerable. We recognize our partner’s attractiveness. What we do with this feeling can actually increase the bond between our partner and us if we learn to ask for reassurance.

A jealous encounter may cause a partner to feel accused of doing something wrong. George and Laurie role-play it in an escalated and triggered way. Then, they demo a more secure and protected way of sharing these feelings and getting the comfort that adds to the couple's connection.

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ZocDoc.com/Foreplay
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Lasting Connection System / Foreplay20: https://www.buildingalastingconnection.com/couple-connection-system/

11/05/2022

We're so thankful for your support! We love hearing your comments and getting your feedback. Please help us spread the word that talking about s*x is what makes it intimate and keeps it hot! Sharing with a friend is our greatest compliment. www.foreplays*xtherapy.com

11/05/2022

https://bit.ly/3FK4t5l Timing is everything and for many, well most of us, we’ve all experienced poor timing especially s*xually. If you’ve ever been in a relationship, you most likely have a memory of a time when your partner shared something, you asked a question and it didn’t go over so well. An argument ensues and you’re both left with emotional whiplash. Download this episode to hear George and Laurie’s take on timing, why it goes south (from a neuroscience standpoint) and how to get it back on track. A bit of a spoiler but here is a gem from the episode: Is what you are about to say/do add or take away? Hear our hosts as they help listeners be more intentional about timing and how to recover when timing is off.

11/05/2022

Timing is everything and for many, well , most of us, we’ve all experienced poor timing. https://bit.ly/3FK4t5l If you’ve ever been in a relationship, you most likely have a memory of a time when your partner shared something, you asked a question and it didn’t go over so well. An argument ensues and you’re both left with emotional whiplash. Download this episode to hear George and Laurie’s take on timing, why it goes south (from a neuroscience standpoint) and how to get it back on track. A bit of a spoiler but here is a gem from the episode: Is what you are about to say/do add or take away? Hear our hosts as they help listeners be more intentional about timing and how to recover when timing is off.

10/14/2022

Did you know that 10% of s*xual encounters with intimate partners go badly? https://bit.ly/3EHbZgQ Join Laurie and George for this episode, where they discuss strategies partners can use when s*xual situations go awry. Our hosts share a bit of vulnerability as well and moments in their own lives when pressure, expectation and disappointment got the best of them. We want you to feel confident with your partner that you can pivot when you have failures. Strategies include using playful humor to encourage reconnection, meaningful conversation to process disappointment together and slowness to create opportunities for understanding. You can give your relationship some permission to get it wrong so you can keep it hot!

10/07/2022

Here we are at the wedding night. https://bit.ly/3CFr0P1 After months, maybe years of planning, the special day is finally here! This episode is about s*xpectations on the wedding night. Did you know over 50% of couples don’t have s*x on their wedding night? Exhaustion and too many reception cocktails are often the culprit for this miss BUT are engaged couples having conversations about wedding night s*xpectations before the big day? Hear George and Laurie talk about the importance of having these conversations and negotiating together what your idea of wedding night s*x looks like. You may want to take stress off yourselves and save s*x for the honeymoon, you may want to explore what your B.E.S.T s*x looks like. Either way, we hope couples will reduce pressure to get it perfect on their wedding night. When we make these implicit conversations explicit, we can avoid disappointment and resentment taking space in what is otherwise a joyous union. Healthy s*x conversations to help you keep it hot, right from the start!

10/05/2022

Cool article our clinical manager Caroline Landen is quoted in!

Reading series spotlighting steamy pulp novels helps writer heal from purity culture trauma

09/16/2022

We’ve talked about the cycle before and we’re talking about it again! Why? because after de-escalating conflict there’s more to do to get closer with your partner! https://bit.ly/3djRuvv This time we explore what EFT calls Stage 2 in s*xual attachment. Join Laurie and George for this episode to understand how your moves and your partners moves impact one another and the deeper, unseen meanings they have. When we start to understand the good reasons we are missing each other there is opportunity to connect. Does your partner’s criticism represent their hope for the relationship? Does their silence mean they are trying to keep the pressure low? Hear how we flip the script to help you keep it hot!!

Hey therapists, do you need help understanding and de-escalating the s*xual cycle for your couple clients? We hope you’ll meet us on March 3rd & 4th (date change) for our training on this topic. www.foreplays*xtherapy.com under Resources!

Also our Couple's Weekend - Great S*x, Great Love is coming up on October 28th! (same website)

09/02/2022

The million maybe billion-dollar question: how do we increase low s*xual desire in women? https://bit.ly/3KDL8mV Laurie and George discuss what is shutting down s*xual desire in women. George gets it right by saying women often put everyone else’s needs ahead of their own. And Laurie discusses their disconnection to their own s*xual needs. Click on the link below to hear Laurie and George address blocks to s*xual desire and their lifelike roleplay of how this affects a couple’s dynamic. Laurie puts on her therapist hat and the work is pure magic! S*xual withdrawers will feel so validated listening to this episode.

Don’t forget to join us on October 28th for our Great S*x, Great Love virtual couple’s retreat. If your relationship is good but needs some extra attention or you and your partner want to learn how to deepen your s*xual connection, we hope to see you there!
www.foreplays*xtherapy.com

08/26/2022

He Thinks I’m Too Fat for S*x

Listen to a caller who leaves us a message about her husband telling her he thinks she’s too heavy to be attractive. Whew! https://bit.ly/3R9t5H7 Laurie and George work through their own reaction and anger at this painful message to our listener. We question the narrowness of her partner’s focus on a minimal change (she’s young and fit) as opposed to having a broader view of eroticism that includes her body, her spirit, her heart, and her mind. If you ever wanted to hear George get hot under the collar with pursuer energy and righteous anger.. here’s a good episode.

Rev up your s*x life with Dame! Use the coupon code 'Foreplay' for 15% off your first order! DameProducts.com code FOREPLAY.

Our couple's retreat Great Love; Great S*x is coming on October 28th - please register at foreplaycouplestherapy.com under Resources.

08/05/2022

Oral s*x - you like it. You don’t like it. What works. What doesn’t work. Laurie and George talk about it all. https://bit.ly/3StgT5O They role play a couple who gets stuck in their negative cycle of retaliation - "if you don’t go down on me; I won’t go down on you." Then, they demo how a couple might talk to help each other work through their difficulties with oral s*x.

07/22/2022

She Needs to Get Ready; He Needs To Get Going

She needs more foreplay and he doesn’t wanna lose his er****on. https://bit.ly/3PNeH6M Women need a slow patter of arousal to reach the best climax. Men, when they’re on sildenafil (vi**ra, etc.) need to use their er****on - soon. This is a familiar dilemma for couples in their later 40s-50s. George and Laurie role-play a couple who learns how to talk about this problem. With appreciation for each other, they counter shame and affirm their willingness to tackle this common dilemma.

Check out our great sponsors:

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