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Please, LinkedIn, Don’t Block My Posts

February 26, 2020 by Jill Whitney

The other day I was chatting with a friend I don’t see often but with whom I’m friends on LinkedIn. He said something about it being lucky his company’s filters didn’t block my “uh…interesting posts.” He meant, of course, what I write about sexuality and especially the importance of talking about intimacy and sexual health […]

Filed Under: Everyone, Featured, For Parents of Teens and Preteens, For Parents of Young Children Tagged With: intimacy, relationships, sex, sexual health

When You Want to Make Love (Not Just Have Sex)

December 11, 2019 by Jill Whitney

“Making love” used to be a euphemism for having sex, back when people tried to avoiding saying “sex” (unless they were referring to gender). Now, we talk about sex in so many ways that “making love” sounds sort of quaint. But it’s quaint in a good way—like building a wood fire or playing a board […]

Filed Under: Everyone, Featured Tagged With: couples, love, love-making, relationships, sex

Should Busy Couples Schedule Sex?

October 29, 2019 by Jill Whitney

Your lives are super-busy. What with jobs, taking care of the kids, dealing with the house, and just daily life, you hardly get any time alone with your partner. Even when you do, one or both of you may be so wiped out that sex just isn’t happening. That’s the reality…but it rots. You aren’t […]

Filed Under: Everyone, Featured, For Parents of Teens and Preteens, For Parents of Young Children Tagged With: couples, date night, intimacy, parents, relationships, sex

If Your Partner Is Perfect, Don’t Get Married

August 27, 2019 by Jill Whitney

When you hear someone say the person they’re dating is perfect, you might be happy for them. Me, I’m happy they’re happily in love—but my second thought is, please don’t get married. At least, not yet. Because no one is perfect. Someone might be an awesome person and an excellent fit for you, but they […]

Filed Under: Everyone, Featured Tagged With: commitment, dating, love, marriage, relationships

How (Casual) Sex Is Like Ice Cream

June 25, 2019 by Jill Whitney

Ice cream is awesome, right? I’m not a big dessert person, but ice cream…well, it’s hard to resist. Still, I eat ice cream far less often than I’d like to because I don’t like the consequences. Unlike my cousin Bert, one of those lucky, lots-of-exercise people who can eat whatever he wants without gaining weight, […]

Filed Under: Everyone, Featured, For Parents of Teens and Preteens Tagged With: intimacy, relationships, self-care, sex

TalkStarter for Adults: How Do You Rate the 3 Parts of Romantic Love?

May 30, 2019 by Jill Whitney

We all have a sort of vague idea of what “romantic love” means. But there are folks who think about love for a living (really!) who can help the rest of us find language to understand and express what we feel—and what we want. Cornell professor Robert J. Sternberg developed what he calls the “Triangle […]

Filed Under: Everyone, Featured Tagged With: commitment, dating, intimacy, love, marriage, relationships

TalkStarter for Adults: What Was the Most Helpful Thing Your Parents Said about Sex?

April 30, 2019 by Jill Whitney

It’s easy to think about all the ways your parents didn’t do a great job teaching you about sexuality: the facts they avoided telling you, the times they freaked out or got judgy, the conversations they shut down, the things you wish you’d known. But they probably didn’t get it all wrong. Likely they told […]

Filed Under: Everyone, Featured, For Parents of Teens and Preteens, For Parents of Young Children, TalkStarters Tagged With: kids, parenting, relationships, sex ed

TalkStarter for Teens: What Was Hard for You as a Teen

November 28, 2018 by Jill Whitney

Maybe you’ve always meant to talk more with your kids about sex and dating, but kept putting it off. Now they’re teens or preteens and you know you need to open a conversation, but you don’t know where to start. How can you get beyond the wall of groans, eye-rolling, and “I know all that”? […]

Filed Under: Featured, For Parents of Teens and Preteens, TalkStarters Tagged With: preteens parenting, relationships, sex ed, teens

Ghosting, Other Dating Trends, and Humans

October 30, 2018 by Jill Whitney

Halloween ghosts I’m good with. On real ghosts—spirits who haven’t crossed to the other side—I try to keep an open mind. But ghosting in relationships? That brings out the judgmental in me. In case you’ve missed it, “ghosting” is a “dating trend.” (More later on why I put that in quotes.) It’s when a person […]

Filed Under: Everyone, Featured, For Parents of Teens and Preteens Tagged With: breakups, dating, dating trends, ghosting, relationships

How Often Should Couples Have Sex?

October 2, 2018 by Jill Whitney

When people wonder how often they “should” have sex, one of two things is likely going on. Sometimes they’re anxious about whether they’re “normal.” We talk so little about healthy sexuality that many of us don’t know where we stand, so we worry. The good news on this: The range of “normal” in human sexual […]

Filed Under: Everyone, Featured Tagged With: couples, relationships, sex

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Please, LinkedIn, Don’t Block My Posts

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When You Want to Make Love (Not Just Have Sex)

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About the Author

Jill Whitney is a licensed marriage and family therapist dedicated to improving communication about relationships, sexuality, and intimacy. Learn more about her and her practice at Green Tree Professional Counseling.

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