Elisabeth LaMotte
Lauren Groff Riverhead Books, 2015 391 pages When couples in therapy describe their relationship challenges, the delicate act of balancing separateness and togetherness surfaces as a recurring theme. Lauren Groff’s provocative 2015 novel, Fates and Furies, injects this theme with steroids and invites readers into a provocative narrative exploring the internal emotional worlds of two…
Read MoreNo magical piece of information shared between a well-intended couple will ensure that they live happily ever after; however, discussing the relationship’s strengths and weaknesses is important part of deciding about and preparing for marriage. The question of what your future spouse needs to know about you illuminates the more meaningful question of what YOU…
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Director: Andrew Haigh Writers: David Constantine (short story ‘In Another Country’) Andrew Haigh adaptation 1 hour, 35 minutes, December, 2015 Communication surfaces as a centerpiece for most couples in therapy. Married people often direct more effort towards communicating with children, friends and colleagues and less effort towards engaged discussions with their spouse. 45 Years was…
Read More“I know it’s late, but we need to talk!” The tension between women wanting to talk and men wanting to sleep is the stuff of standard sitcom fare since the days of I Love Lucy. Nevertheless, there’s an epidemic of sleep-deprived couples lacking adequate communication. As a result, sex is often less frequent than one…
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Director: David Frankel Screenplay: Scott Frank and Don Roos Based on the book Marley & Me by John Grogan How do I balance the demands of my job and the needs of my kids? Should I work or stay at home while the kids are young? Should I take the job that pays the bills…
Read More Annie Grace opens her 2015 self-help book about alcohol use by asking a provocative question: “What if, by reversing years of unconscious conditioning, you could return to the perspective of a non-drinker?” Grace proceeds to talk readers through her strategy to return to a mental state where the desire for a drink disappears. She blends…
Read More Director: Stephen Frears Screenwriters: John Cusack, D.V. DeVincentis, Steve Pink, Scott Resenberg Review by Nick Bastion in a collaboration with Vixen Daily In continuing my musings on my favorite romantic movies, I thought I’d move onto another off-beat choice – High Fidelity. Adapted from Nick Hornby’s acclaimed novel published twenty years ago last month, this 2000 film stars John Cusack…
Read MoreSex can be an uncomfortable topic, but an important one. And “sex” extends beyond all aspects of the physical relationship to include flirtation, sensuality and monogamy. If a relationship is becoming serious, and you expect your partner to be monogamous, it is worth discussing what monogamy means to you in the short-term and in the…
Read More Kim Edwards, 2006, 401 pages, Penguin Books Relationships and intimacy are an expected focus in psychotherapy. Most clients reach out to our practice because something is happening — or is not happening — in an important relationship or in several relationships. Some action-forcing event often makes it clear that something has to change in order…
Read More Some books are so special, articulate, and profound that the pages read as if the book has written itself. Paul Kalanithi’s When Breath Becomes Air leashes words together in poetic combinations that are both a revelation but also obvious. Sentences seem as if they were waiting to be placed beside each other with remarkable beauty and clarity.…
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