Relationship Prescriptions with Dr. Carol

We all get wounded. What do you do with your wounds? As humans we naturally hide the parts of us we deem least presentable. And that very hiding is what prevents the deep healing and transformation Jesus longs to bring. In this moving and personal episode, author, pastor, and ministry director Russell Joyce talks with Dr. Carol about how Jesus finds us in our wounds. His own shame and physical pai...

Our culture seems obsessed with sex. Then why do so many men seem to experience sexual desire as a place of brokenness, shame, struggle, and confusion? Dr. Carol's guest on this episode asserts that men are oversexualized yet sexually undernourished, and that many men need more talk, not less, about sexuality. Experienced therapist and author Sam Jolman joins Dr. Carol to talk about masculine sexu...

While approximately 50% of those who call themselves Christian in the developed world are unmarried, only about 25% of the typical church attendees are unmarried. Where are the other single Christians? Many unmarried Christians report unique struggles in their walk with God. They often report feeling disconnected or even alienated from the body of Christ, like church isn't for them. On this episod...

The need to belong is deep in our human souls. We are almost always asking, "Am I on the inside? Or on the outside?" Loneliness has strong negative impacts on our physical, emotional, and spiritual wellbeing. Dr. Carol's conversation with writer, speaker, and podcaster Sarah E. Westfall will help you navigate your need to belong, and how that comes more from who you are than something you achieve....

More religious stuff to do.  So much performance leads to anxiety and exhaustion. When our attachment to God is insecure, or is based on our own activity and behavior, there's no life. Anglican priest and spiritual director Summer Joy Gross has walked the journey to become securely attached to God. She talks with Dr. Carol on this episode about how you can do the same. While offering practices tha...

Marriage is hard. And it can be really  hard when you face betrayal, neurodiversity, old baggage, emotional deprivation, and more. Shawna Meek has faced all this, and has chosen to stay married. She talks with Dr. Carol about what helped her stay - and stay sane - in the middle of all the mess. You may or may not make the same choice Shawna has. But regardless, this conversation will help you feel...

Your journey to wholeness - sexually and otherwise - will be opposed. That opposition comes from both inside you and from outside you. That opposition includes pressure from the kingdom of darkness. Not everything is spiritual warfare, but understanding this aspect of what you will face helps you be prepared and successful in facing the opposition.   Dr. Carol provides three specific strategies or...

We often don't get what we want and that is often a good thing. Desire—including sexual desire—can often be in disorder.   Today's follower of Jesus exist at a moment in history when our desires, longings, and wants are being weaponized against us by cultural, spiritual, and relational forces. "Follow your heart" and "You do you" has become our moment's mantras. The result, for too many, is feelin...

It's never really about sex. Matters of the heart and a desire for intimacy are imbedded in humans since creation. But what does that mean if you are married? Or single? God gave us desire; he gave us this longing … the Greeks called it eros, passion, It's the deepest desire of our heart. However, our world has hijacked eros, it just sees it as erotic. It has been taken over by a corrupt culture t...

Your heart is shattered. How can you find healing when you've been wounded by trauma and betrayal? And that process is even more challenging when you brought your past complex trauma into the relationship to begin with. Trauma expert and counselor Stacey Sadler Smith has both experienced that herself, and now brings years of professional experience to helping both individuals and couples heal from...

Many who use pornography struggle to quit when they try to, even if they deeply believe it's wrong and even while using various tricks and techniques and "praying more". Porn is often seen as the problem, and it  is  a problem. But what if porn is the (false) solution being offered to a different "problem".  On this vulnerable and raw episode, Dr. Carol talks with Drew Boa about how he came to see...

Most people know sex trafficking exists. But you might imagine that's something "out there" and could never affect anyone close to you. And why would someone ever get hooked into that lifestyle? Why don't they just leave? Dr. Carol's guest on this episode is Jasmine Grace Marino. As a former sex worker who now helps and advocates for others on the journey out of that lifestyle, she talks openly ab...

May is mental health awareness month. It's no secret that mental health issues have become a pandemic in our culture. How can Christians navigate their own mental health in ways that are both effective and consistent with their faith? And what might the Christian church have to offer in the broader mental health arena? Joe Padilla, licensed and ordained minister, talks with Dr. Carol about the Men...

With all the talk in the last few years about "toxic masculinity," what is a real man? Does it have to do with doing "manly" things such as sports or being outdoors? It can't be being "nice;" that's not appealing. What's really at the core of being a man, particularly as God intended? Author, radio host, and advocate for children's healing Brant Hansen talks with Dr. Carol on this episode about th...

What did you expect out of life and marriage? Are you getting what you wanted? Life can get busy and overwhelming for a man in the "stress bubble" in trying to manage life, marriage, perhaps kids, career, and trying to be the man God created you to be. You could use some help.  Jim Ramos, author, speaker, and founder of Men in the Arena, is Dr. Carol's guest on this episode. They talk about the ma...

There are many reasons for and ways of becoming hard in our cruel world. You may think a hard heart is a good and protective thing. When harm or disappointment comes, a natural human response is to develop a tough and closed heart. But that also closes you off to the good things God intends for you and wants to work in you. Is there a way to cherish a soft heart in a tough world? Mother, writer, a...

If you've been wrestling with sexual "stuff," you may wonder things like, How did I end up this way? Why do I keep doing this? Why do I keep trying harder and nothing seems to change? Why aren't my prayers working? How do I get out of this mess? In this conversation with Dr. Carol, counselor, author, and minister Jay Stringer explains why the details of your story, especially your sexual story, sh...

Transgender issues have become a hot topic in culture and in the Christian church. Is the cultural narrative missing the point, and if so, where? How can Christians address the distress those struggling with gender issues experience in a redemptive way? Dr. Carol's guest on this fascinating episode is Walt Heyer, who transitioned to living as a woman for eight years, and then de-transitioned back...

In part one of last week's conversation, Dr. Carol described why information alone is not effective in bringing sexual wholeness, and why experiences and true connection is necessary. In part two, you'll hear what Dr. Carol Ministries has already been doing to help people grow into sexual wholeness, and some of the results. And you'll hear about the new kind of experience we are offering to help p...

There's an abundance of information available in regards to sexuality and relationships. But that information has not resulted in any lessening of sexual brokenness - in the culture at large or within the Christian church. Something is missing. In this first of a two-part conversation, Dr. Carol addresses that missing piece by discussing neurobiology, the way God created human beings with the need...

If your marriage is difficult, when is it a character issue? And when is it the way someone's brain is wired?  How do you respond with grace while protecting your sanity? Neurodiversity, in particular autism spectrum disorder, impacts human relationships deeply, especially marriages. On this episode Dr. Carol talks with Dr. Stephanie Holmes, psychologist and coach specializing in neurodiverse Chri...

Same-sex attraction and homosexuality are hot-button issues both in culture and in the  Christian church. But beneath the debates about behavior, as important as those are, there are deeper matters of the heart including the need for attachment and intimacy. How does that connect with what Scripture says about homosexuality? In this challenging and deep episode, Dr. Carol talks with Anne Edward ab...

Confused, emotionally exhausted, or feeling crazy or depressed about your marriage? These might be signs you are being impacted by narcissistic and emotional abuse. Narcissism is a loaded word in our contemporary culture. But how do you know if that's what you're experiencing is your imagination, or is truly toxic? Dr. David Hawkins, director of the Marriage Recovery Center, has been dealing with...

Bad things happen even to good people. What happens in a person when they experience trauma or ongoing hardship? There's been a lot of talk in the last few years about trauma-informed care, PTSD, and such. How does all that integrate with faith in God and one's Christian experience? Dr. Shannae Anderson, licensed clinical psychologist, has been working in this field for over 25 years. She talks wi...

Culture has made many people believe you must have a happy sex life in order to be whole and fulfilled in life. The church has "Christianized" that idea, leading many to believe you are entitled to sex, especially if you're married. But countless Christian married people are finding that doesn't work out well. Author, husband, podcaster, and pastor Noah Filipiak talks with Dr. Carol on this episod...