More and more Americans, especially in California, New York, Chicago and other sophisticated areas, are seeing a psychotherapist. In fact, as many as 38% of Americans are seeing or have seen a therapist. Let’s talk about psychotherapists: Psychologists, marriage and family therapists, licensed social workers in private practice and psychiatrists, to name a few. (Psychiatrists are actually the people in this group least likely to practice psychotherapy, since they mostly prescribe drugs.) Most psychotherapists are consummate professionals, well-trained and educated. But not all of them are good. Some of them are criminals, some are drug addicts, and some have sex with their patients. Some of them are just plain incompetent.…

When Grant Tribbett proposed to his girlfriend Cassandra Reschar, he didn’t just make a commitment to her. He made one to her daughter too. Grant proposed twice that day — once to his girlfriend and again to her five-year-old daughter. On May 27, Grant took Cassandra, a single mom, and her five-year-old daughter Adrianna to Cracker Barrel for breakfast followed by an outing to Ritchey Woods Nature Preserve in Fishers, Indiana. The three of them walked together a mile into the woods until they reached a wooden bridge. That’s where Grant got down on one knee and asked Cassandra to marry him ― and made a very special promise to…

Ah, women. I, for the most part of my life had women pegged completely wrong. Absolutely and wholeheartedly. As a young boy, I didn’t have much to do with girls because it was the natural thing to do; run with your own species. Yet looking back I often wonder if I had allowed myself to play with the girl’s things might have been a lot different. I was a sensitive young boy and I still am. Rough and tumble doesn’t appeal to me like a nice chat over coffee does. That has always been the case for me. I’ve recently found out through learning about myself that I get along…

Sarah Treem knows that being a working mom is veritable roller coaster ride of emotions and hard decisions. As the creator of the Golden Globe-winning television show, “The Affair,” and mother of two children under 5, she’s become a public face of successful work-life balance. But Treem opened up about the difficult reality behind the glamorous facade in a powerful essay for Red Online. “As I write this, I’m alone in my house with my 4-year-old son and my 10-month-old daughter. My daughter has caught some virus that seems to be generating a really terrifying rash on 90% of her body,” she wrote. “My lovely pediatrician, who I’ve now seen three…

With a million unique proposals flooding the internet on a daily basis, it’s hard to stand out—unless you’re lucky enough to enlist the help of Kelly Clarkson.  The singer assisted some fans in making their marriage proposal one to remember at a recent meet and greet, and well, see how cute it is for yourself.  Alex Malerba proposed to his boyfriend Justin backstage with the singer, and the surprise went swimmingly (spoiler: he said yes!). Justin, who was under the assumption that the two were simply there to take pictures with Clarkson, began crying once Malerba popped the question.  “Oh my God, I’m so happy,” Clarkson exclaimed after Malerba got…

It’s a well-worn stereotype that the great citizens of Canada apologize a lot—so much so, in fact, that there’s a law about it. The Apology Act, passed by the province of Ontario in 2009, reminds litigants that “a statement that a person is sorry” or any other “expression of sympathy or regret” following an incident should not be considered an admission of fault or liability by the apologizer. In other words, “I’m sorry you found spittle on your Tim Bits” does not legally mean, “I apologize for spitting on your Tim Bits.” Leave it to Canada to legalize sympathy. (Trust is important. So we conducted a survey to find out…

JOY: Here’s the truth: I liked not having sex. I was a virgin prior to dating Justin and I was not disappointed in my introduction to sex my freshman year of college. I loved everything about it—the foreplay, the actual play, the release, the freedom, and most of all, I loved that I was sharing my sexual liberation with someone I loved. JUSTIN: Unlike Joy, I was sixteen when I lost my virginity. Women and sex were constant themes during lunch conversations at my all-boys high school. The more women you slept with, the more respect you garnered from your peers. As a sexually novice freshman, I struggled developing my…

What is social anxiety? Marjan Apostolovic/Shutterstock If you have an extreme fear of being judged in social situations, if you have a sadistic focus on all the things that can go wrong—nervously blurting out everything you never wanted to say aloud just to fill conversational lulls, or if you scrutinize all the awkward things you think you did or said after the fact, you could have social anxiety. Social anxiety is the number one mental health issue in North America, affecting 15 million American adults. A little social anxiety is normal for everyone, but when it becomes abnormal, it’s a self-serving narcissist hell-bent on your full attention. Social anxiety is especially tough to manage because it’s not just…