Understanding and expressing who you are as a sexual creature is essential to knowing yourself as a complete human being. Explore your gender identity and sexual orientation, release shame, deepen your capacity for intimacy and heal from sexual trauma with the guidance of a skilled and compassionate depth therapist.
The way you approach intimacy, what you desire, and how your fantasies shape your reality all provide important clues as to where you can expand and develop your identity and way of being in the world.
What you explicitly desire, what you secretly desire, and what still remains outside of your conscious awareness are powerful motivators steering the course of your life.
Exiling your sexual desire as a forbidden subject that you engage with in a fragmented manner can destroy your intimate relationships and limit your potential for creativity.
In plain terms, the repression and denial of your basic instincts will make you sick.
Still, sex can be one of the most difficult areas to discuss openly for fear of judgment or rejection by those who matter most to you. In the realm of sexuality, it is critical to have a non-partial, non-judgmental listener who can hold the most intimate aspects of your being with empathy and kindness.
In this work, we will approach sex from a place of openness and curiosity with the goal of integrating all aspects of your identity so you can freely express yourself in alignment with the multifaceted, dynamic individual you truly are.
The challenges and rewards of sex, love, and human connection transcend social norms and categories. Where there is love, there is value and the potential for healing.
As a therapist, I am more interested in how you love than who you love; the ways your relationship helps you grow rather than the terms that define it.
In the context of unconditional positive regard, I will help you explore the truth of your desire, what makes you feel powerful, and what makes you feel safe enough to be vulnerable.
We will examine how you derive meaning from your sexual experiences, create emotional intimacy in relationships, and form spiritual bonds that both originate from and transcend the physical body.
I welcome queer and heterosexual clients alike. Whether you are lesbian, gay, bi or trans will make no difference in the quality of attention you can expect to receive in my care.
Sex, whether a simple act of physical pleasure or a the embodied experience of divine bliss, is a fundamental way that, as humans, we relate to one another, embody our animalistic nature and transcend it.
When sex is misused as a substitute for emotional connection, a transactional exchange for power and validation, an addictive escape, or an unconscious attempt to resolve a traumatic experience through the repetition of dangerous behaviors, there is risk of deep loneliness, avoidance of one's internal world, an outsourcing of agency and violence.
For individuals who have suffered from sexual abuse, rape and intimate partner violence, the idea of physical intimacy can be terrifying. Your own body may feel like treacherous territory. Resolving your history of sexual trauma through somatic awareness and emotional insight clears a path for creating a renewed sense of safety that will enable the body and heart to eventually open again.
Exploring what motivates your desire for sex and the fears that get in the way of a blissful, embodied connection with your partner can lead to the revelation of underlying issues that need to be addressed before you can find the freedom and release that belongs to lasting sexual pleasure.
Wherever you find yourself in the infinitely varied spectrum of culture, gender, race, sex and religious identity, you are welcome here with me.
My approach is gender sensitive, inclusive and sex positive. I recognize the value of all forms of relationship and sexual connectedness that honor honesty, safety, and consent. I believe that a positive approach to sex emphasizes mutual respect and pleasure, regardless of gender identity and sexual orientation.
My office is in Tiburon, CA with easy proximity to Mill Valley, Sausalito and San Francisco. I see clients for therapy in person and online anywhere in California.
Marriage and Family Therapist License #114969
1805 Mar West Street, Tiburon, California 94920, United States
Copyright © 2019-22 Marla Leigh Caplan - All Rights Reserved.