The Secret to Desire in a Long Term Relationship

Esther Perel gave a TED talk a couple years ago that made her rather famous. She asks some poignant questions about relationships and desire which are listed as follows: Why does good sex so often fade, even for couples who love each other so much?  Can we want what we already have? Why is the…

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Rethinking Infidelity

Why do we cheat? Why do happy people cheat? What does infidelity mean to you? Why do we always think that Men cheat out of boredom and fear of intimacy, but women cheat out of hunger and desire for intimacy? Esther Perel has been working with couples for 20+ years, and has seen many couples…

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Is monogamy really possible? Or is it just not natural?

On an episode of Dr. Phil in 2012, Dr. David Ley appeared to discuss sexual desire and monogamy. Dr. David Ley explained a huge component of attraction, facial symmetry. Women are more attracted to people with facial symmetry, as our brains analyze symmetry as having good DNA to reproduce with.  Dr. Phil asked David Ley,…

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Empathy Vs. Sympathy, A Short by Brene Brown 

In this short, Brene Brown beautifully describes the difference between empathy and sympathy. It seems that in general, many of us get these two confused. Check out this video: According to Brene Brown, empathy fuels connections, and sympathy drives disconnection.  “Empathy is a choice, and it’s a vulnerable one.” – Dr. Brené Brown Qualities of Empathy…

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Getting to Know Respark Therapist, Katie Green!

Katie Green is one of our Austin clinicians, and specializes in emotional and sexual satisfaction, men’s identity and sexuality issues, grief and loss, body image issues, gender identity issues, and queer and transgender individuals. Katie’s counseling style is compassionate, collaborative, curious and playful! She is sex-positive and has a particular gift at asking thought-provoking questions…

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The Power of Vulnerability – A Summary of Brene Brown’s TED Talk

  by Taylor Spaziani – Respark’s Clinical Manager & Intake Specialist  Brene Brown is what she calls a “researcher-storyteller,” and in her Ted Talk “The Power of Vulnerability,” she discusses her 6-year research on vulnerability. As a social worker, Brene was always told to lean into the discomfort of her work, but she wants to…

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