Ep. 2: I Want to Feel Wanted

[Contains Explicit Content] After ten years, a husband tells his wife he no longer wishes to be married. A month later, stuck in limbo, they come to Esther. She helps them have an honest conversation about their expectations, desires, and the ways in which their role as parents has left little room for intimacy.

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This makes me so sad. He clearly has ASD.

As a clinical psychologist, I love Esther Perel’s therapy work. However, this one is a miss. This husband is so rigid and rule-bound because he very clearly has undiagnosed Autism Spectrum Disorder. Neither he nor anyone else understands how his brain works and why certain things are so challenging. He and his wife clearly love and care for each other and this is so painful for them both. I very much hope they were able to figure things out.

Gut-wrenching

Listening to this was gut wrenching. I was deeply angered by this man's persistence in getting what he wanted despite how it impacted his wife. I was even more astounded by the woman's determination in working on their marriage. I couldn't decide whether I was sympathetic for, disappointed in, or angry at her. The desperation she exuded was palpable.