As a sexual recovery therapist, I have heard many lies about male and female sexuality. One of these lies is that men have to ejaculate every 72 hours. If the man is not allowed to do, so they will experience what is known as “blue balls,” which refers to the faint blue color testicles may get in “severe cases.” Over the past several decades, this lie has traveled the globe many times over.

— Cory Schortzman

Say you’re out on the town when you suddenly get a random text from your ex that says “I miss you.” It’s been over a year since you’ve cut off all ties, so what gives?

If this kind of message leaves you with a sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach, you may have just been “hoovered.”

I’m starting a series on the blog this month on direct communication, and yesterday we looked at what hinders speaking directly. We’ll also cover what direct communication looks like, HOW to speak directly, and how direct communication isn’t the same thing as being mean (though it may seem so at first!).

But before we tackled that, I had a reader question that I really needs to be answered first.

When we’re talking about direct communication, I’m not talking about yelling or being angry–no matter how “direct” that appears

Sexual narcissism, sometimes called sexual entitlement, involves a largely self-centered view of sexual activity.

People with traits of sexual narcissism typically have an inflated idea of their sexual skills and bedroom performance and focus primarily on what they want.

Season 17 of The Bachelorette concluded Monday night with three hours of high ponytails, one giant engagement ring, and a spicy confrontation between Katie Thurston and her second runner-up Greg Grippo, to whom she hadn’t spoken since he unexpectedly left in the episode prior. After informing his family she was “the one,” Greg told Katie he’d never been so happy in a relationship, but then quickly became insecure when she didn’t mirror his language.

Emotional blackmail describes a style of manipulation where someone uses your feelings as a way to control your behavior or persuade you to see things their way.

Dr. Susan Forward, a therapist, author, and lecturer, pioneered the term in her 1997 book, “Emotional Blackmail: When the People in Your Life Use Fear, Obligation, and Guilt to Manipulate You.” Through the use of case studies, she breaks down the concept of emotional blackmail to help people better understand and overcome this type of manipulation.

Has sex become something your clients just do rather than enjoy? Do they feel pressured into having sex? Is it possible to be sexually abused in a marital relationship?