Foreplay Radio – Couples and Sex Therapy

Join George and Laurie as we answer a 'Mailbag' question from a listener that asks our hosts with their help to fix their sexless marriage. Sexless marriages are defined as having sex less than four times a year. Our listener shares that they love their partner but know that they withdraw both emotionally and sexually. She has worked hard to try ALL the things to increase engagement on both levels and finds that not much has changed. Our hosts are masters of empathy and begin a conversation with empathy and validation for both partners. George and Laurie work to take us inside the 'inner world' of the withdrawing partner to understand better the things that aren't being articulated. However, while our hosts validate the current state of the relationship they won't co-sign NOT having a conversation. Listen along today to hear Laurie and George's great suggestions which include finding an EFT therapist, naming the unnamed and reducing the pressure. Head on over to our website to submit your mailbag question! Check out our fantastic sponsors: Foriawellness.com/foreplay -- for great sex-enhancing products! Cozyearth.com/foreplay -- for the softest sheets and lounge wear you'll ever touch! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Attachment theory helps lovers make sense of why we do what we do in relationships. Developed from attachment theory, the theory of humanbonding, are 4 attachment styles that characterize behaviors in relationships. We like to also call them strategies and we use these strategies as a means of protection when we sense a real or perceived threat in our most intimate relationships. On today's episode Laurie and George break down the four attachment styles and their presentation in emotional and sexual cycles. What's important to remember is that attachment relationships begin in childhood and span into adulthood, attachment styles are not fixed and can be improved, and once you name or identify something you can begin a conversation towards change. When we do internal work to become more secure in relationships we are able to take more risks, be more vulnerable and better tolerate ruptures. If you find that you identify with an "insecure" attachment style, it's okay! This is a great learning opportunity to learn more about yourself and what your needs are. Thanks for joining us today in our latest'School of Love' lesson. Keep it hot y'all! Visit our fabulous sponsors: Check out Rocketmoney.com and stop spending money on subscriptions you don't use! Uberlube.com/foreplay -- Laurie's favorite lubricant! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Maybe you've decided that you need to work on your relationship but what is it exactly that you want to work on? You don't want to sit in therapy and rehash every argument you had that week. Most often couples want relief from their distress and for their relationship to return to a time of greater joy andhappiness. Join George and Laurie today as they share how to determine what you want when you make a decision to improve your relationship. Your homework assignment for this school of love lesson is to write down a list of positive qualities and interactions with your partner and your relationship strengths. These essential qualities are often not commented on and there can be a tendency to be problem focused when you consider your relationship. Negative feedback creates more negative feedback and this is when couples becomestuck in a negative interaction cycle. Next, we encourage you to think about what you want to improve and how you can take action to make some changes. Finding clarity in what you want to work on in your relationship is a great first step to creating a fulfilling and meaningful relationship with both partners. Hop on over to our Instagram account@foreplay_sextherapy and share your thoughts! Check out our great sponsors and help support the podcast! ForiaWellness.com/foreplay -- great products to enhance your sex life! CozyEarth.com -- the softest sheets and loungewear! You'll love them! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome Foreplay listeners to a can't miss episode with our friend and colleague Dr. Corey Allan co-host of Sexy Marriage Radio podcast. With over 13 million downloads Corey and his wife Pam, lead couples in deepening and improving conversation about physical intimacy and keeping your marriage sexy. While we are missing George today, we are over the moon to have Corey on as a guest. Are you afraid to let your partner in on your sexual longings? Maybe you know what you want but have no idea how to start the conversation, let alone contine it. Hear Laurie and Corey talk about the best ways to craft these conversations and speak to your partner in the most self-respecting way. How to recover quickly from disconnect to reconnect and kicking perfection out of the bedroom! This episode is filled with amazing gems on marriage that are sure to resonate. Make sure to give them a like and follow on IG@sexymarriageradio and visit their website athttps://smr.fm/ for more information on course, coaching and retreats. George will be back with us next time as we continue working to keep it hot y'all! Like what we're doing? We'd love to have you rate and review our show wherever you stream Foreplay. Check out our sponsors: CozyEarth.com -- for the sexiest, softest, sheets and loungewear out there! Uberlube.com -- Laurie's favorite lubricant to make sex glide! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The saying goes that laughter is the best medicine. In our work as couples therapists, we've seen the power of shared laughter between partners. Laughter has the ability to derail an oncoming cycle, increase playfulness and deepen the bond between lovers. We've also seen moments where humor falls flat and complaints disguised as jokes cause damage. Today's show has listeners learning about the benefits of laughter between partners and creative ways to increase laughter in your bedroom routine. Recalling Emily Nagowski's work from the best-selling book "Come As You Are," hosts Laurie and George discuss when humor is a gas pedal or a brake when it comes to sexual connection and desire in relationships. We encourage listeners to remember that timing is key, we have to consider impact over intent, and find out what makes us laugh together. When laughter is a shared experience it opens up the hearts of lovers even further! Check out our sponsors: RocketMoney.com -- Get rid of those online subscriptions that are like zombies eating your budget! Foriawellness.com/foreplay -- Foria has great products to enhance your sexual experience. Highly recommended by Laurie! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today we are welcoming an attachment expert and our dear friend Julie Mennano, LMFT to the pod. You may know Julie already from her incredibly popular instagram account @thesecurerelationship. With over one million followers, Julie has been educating about attachment theory and EFT on Instagram since 2020 and is the owner of Bozeman Therapy and Counseling, LLC in Montana. She is joining us today to share her new book Secure Love and to help our listeners understand what secure love looks like in action. Julie will break down the four attachment styles and how couples can work to maintain the integrity of their bond through conflict and misunderstanding. Her beautiful work helps us understand how to keep a balance between heart and mind. Couples that read Secure Love will learn more about their attachment bond, being connected even in conflict and how to treat loved ones with care. We encourage you to pick up a copy today to create a relationship that lasts a lifetime. Included is a chapter on secure s*x, which we know our listeners will love! Thanks and keep it hot and secure y'all! Check out our awesome sponsors for this episode: CozyEarth.com -- the best, softest, most wonderful sheets and loungewear! Use the code 'Foreplay' for a site-wide 35% discount! Uberlube.com -- Laurie has been recommending Uberlube for years! Great lubricant that makes everything work smoothly! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Foreplay listeners, join us today for a lesson on emotions! In this installment of our 'Love School' series George and Laurie are letting listeners in on the meaning of emotions and how we can lean into our feelings to improve our love life. There are 5 universally recognized emotions and behind each emotion lies a longing or need. In relationships miscommunication occurs because our non-verbal signals display these emotions well before our verbal communication has a chance to catch up. Go behind the science of emotions and communication with us today and learn how to repair when a bid for physical intimacy begins to go wrong. There is a depth of emotion to explore in s*x and this episode will give you actionable steps to having better conversations. Have you liked our lessons on love? Let us know by leaving a rating/review whereveryou listen to our podcast and give us a follow on Instagram@foreplay_sextherapypodcast Sponsors: Addyi.com Foriawellness.com/FOREPLAY to get 20% off your first order or use code FOREPLAY at checkout Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Time to get nerdy with us today listeners! We're taking another deep dive into the science of love and bonded relationships and exploringmore about attachment theory. We've noticed the trend over the years of big labels being stamped on relationships and it can leave the outlook on love a little dim. Our hope in this episode is to provide more education on behaviors that are created to deal with distress in close relationships. We cite some great research from leading experts, like Peggy Kleinplatz and Girut Birnbaum dedicated to the study of relationships, for couples and therapists around the world to help people love one another better. If you've experienced distress and disconnection and may have some disillusionment about love we invite you to learn more about attachment. We know that strong relationships lead to better quality life and health. Understanding attachment and the science of love is key to getting you there. This is the education we never got in school but so desperately need! Check out our fantastic sponsors: CozyEarth -- the most fantastic, softest, comfiest sheets you've ever slept on! Use the coupon code 'foreplay' to get 35% off site-wide! Addyi.com/Foreplay -- Ask your gynecologist about this drug that helps women with low libido! Rocket Money - Rocket Money can track down and cancel all those online subscriptions you've made and forgotten about that come out of your bank automatically. Save money with Rocket Money! Use the link and let them know we sent you! Uberlube - Laurie's long time favorite lubricant! She's been recommending Uberlube to her clients for years! Use the code 'foreplay' to get your discount! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode is all about attachment theory. Attachment styles have been buzzing in the pop psychology world recently. Our hosts invite listeners to learn more about attachment theory which helps us understand why we fight the way we do and why our partner reacts to conflict in the way they do. Attachment theory is based on the idea that we are here to connect and life is all about relationship and meaningful connection. Join us today as we break down attachment theory, and the attachment styles secure, anxious, avoidant and disorganized. Laurie and George help us put on our attachment lenses to make sense of relationship behaviors that are often misunderstood. You'll take away the useful tips from acronyms A.R.E and O.I.L and how to make your relationship more secure today! Let's us help you love better this year! Check out our great sponsors! Foriawellness.com/Foreplay -- get 20% off your first order! Lumedeodorant.com -- Foreplay listeners get $5 off the starter pack! Addyi.com -- an FDA approved drug for women struggling with low libido. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Grab your pen and notebook for this, you're going to want ALL the notes from this episode! George and Dr. Laurie answer a mailbag question from a longtime listener about bl*w jobs. More specifically, wanting to know how to talk to their spouse about feeling disappointed that this isn't happening intheir sex life. We know that this might be a tense topic for some but our hosts do a fantastic job of equalizing this and addressing what stops oral sex from happening for either partner. Touch, taste, smell and thoughts around the physical aspects of the act are some of the reasons that block or*l sex from being a more regular part of your repertoire. Laurie and George give us some tips and tricks on how to improve basic gential hygiene. Most importantly, these experts discuss the communication issues that present and block partners from having a successful conversation about this topic. As always George reinforces, "if a couple can have a conversation about something then anything is possible." Learn how to work through this delicate conversation with your partner and strengthen the securityin your sex life today! Therapists, if you want to help your clients gain more success around these conversations, make sure you join us for our upcoming Sex and EFT training this January. There is still time to register on our website. We hope to see you there! Check out our awesome sponsors! (They help us keep the lights on and the episodes coming!) CozyEarth.com - the softest, nicest, bestest sheets and PJ's I've ever used! Uberlube.com - Best sex lubricant on the market! Safe and effective. EveryPlate.com/podcasts -- use the code 'Foreplay' to receive $1 steaks! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices