Summer 2019/Fuller Live

Houston & Pasadena

Russell

CN558: Sex and Love Addiction, Recovery and the Church (4 Units: 160 hours). Matthew H Russell.

DESCRIPTION: This course will address sociocultural, biological, neurobiological and spiritual factors related to the etiology, treatment and recovery of sex and love addiction. In addition, the course will explore the impact sex and love addiction has on the individual, family, church and society and the particular role the church can play in recovery from addiction. The course will also examine current typical counselling strategies used in the sex and relationship addiction counselling field, as well as alternative interventions. Specific issues of sex and relationship addiction will be reviewed and learned through class projects that expose a full spectrum of these issues in this field.

LEARNING OUTCOMES: Upon successful completion of this course, students will have demonstrated (1) the current understanding of sex and love addiction and the impact on the individual, family and communities; (2) explain personal/familial factors of sex and love addiction and co-occurring addictions and be able to highlight those personal and familial factors that contribute to addiction and recovery; (3) to identify the effects of abuse and trauma in sex and love addiction as it applies to the individual, their families, and their communities; (4) to accurately describe the sexual addiction cycle and interventions throughout ; (5) the impact of sexual addiction on sexual offending and become familiar with federal, state registries as well as agency/denomination national and local guidelines.

COURSE FORMAT: This class meets daily as a two-week intensive for three hour sessions for a total of 30 hours of classroom instruction for lecture and discussion plus 10 hours of directed learning activities for a total of 40 instructional hours.

REQUIRED READING: 1400 total number of pages required.

Carnes, Patrick, Delmonico, David; Griffin, Elizabeth.In the Shadow of the Net: Breaking Free of Online Sexual Behavior. Hazelden Press, 2007.ISBN: 9781592854783. $15.95. Availability of the e-book from the Fuller Library [264 pp. assigned].

Coakley, Sarah. God Sexuality, and the Self: An Essay ‘On the Trinity’. Cambridge University Press, 2013. ISBN: 9780521558266, Pub. Price $31.99. Availability of the e-book from the Fuller Library, [388 pp. assigned].

Stringer, Jay. Unwanted: How Sexual Brokenness Reveals Our Way to Healing. NavPress, 2018. ISBN: 9781631466724, Pub. Price $16.99. Availability of the e-book from the Fuller Library, [288 pp assigned].

Van der Kolk, Bessel. The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind and Body in the Healing of Trauma. Penguin Books, 2015. ISBN: 9780143127741, Pub. Price 18.00. Availability of the e-book from the Fuller Library, [464 pp assigned].

RECOMMENDED READING:

Carnes, Patrick. Out of the Shadows: Understanding Sexual Addiction. Hazelden Publishing, 2001. ISBN: 9781568386218, Pub. Price $16.95. Availability of the e-book from the Fuller Library. [240 pp.].

Cozolino, Louis. The Neuroscience of Human Relationships: Attachment and the Developing Social Brain. W.W. Norton, 2014. ISBN: 9780393707823, Pub. Price $47.50. Availability of the e-book from the Fuller Library, [656 pp].

Lasser, Mark. Healing The Wounds of Sexual Addiction. Zondervan, 2014. ISBN: 978-0310256571, Pub. Price $15.99. Availability of the e-book from the Fuller Library, [240 pp. assigned].

Schneider, Jennifer; Laaser, Mark; Kaplan, Debra. Reflections on the History of the Sex Addiction Field: A Festschrift. CreateSpace, 2017. ISBN: 9781543270938, Pub. Price $18.95. [262 pp].

ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENT:

  1. 30 hours of class time [30 hours].
  2. 1400 pages of required reading. Submit a reading log noting insights, and dynamics related to ministry, counselling practice and personal family life. (30% of total). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes # 1- 5]. [70 hours].
  3. Abstinence project. Identify a behavior or activity to abstain from for a period of 60 days. This should be a true challenge to you so that you can learn as much as possible about the experience of people working to abstain from behavioral addictions. You will keep a daily journal through these 60 days. Share your chosen behavior with the instructor and with at least two significant people in your life. Develop a plan for managing the difficulties associated with abstinence and include how you will address triggers and relapse. Write a 5-page reflection paper based upon questions that will be given in class. (20% of total) [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1-4]. [10 hours].
  4. Pick two out of these three movies and write three 2-page essays reflecting on a character with a process addiction: Thanks for Sharing, Her, or Men, Women, and Children. Write a compressive assessment and summary of the character’s addiction, how it progressed over time and what led them to treatment. Include biological, psychological social and spiritual components. (10% of total). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1-5]. [10 hours].
  5. Go to 3 Al-anon meetings and write a 5-page reflection paper based upon questions that will be given in class. (10% of total). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #2-5].[10 hours]
  6. A research essay on an assigned topic [2,000 words] (30%). [This assignment is related to learning outcome #1-5]. [30 hours].

PREREQUISITES: [Will you require auditors to complete all assignments? The Department Chair will insert the remaining prerequisites information for you.]

RELATIONSHIP TO CURRICULUM:

FINAL EXAMINATION: None.

NOTE: This ECD is a reliable guide to the course design but is subject to modification. Textbook prices are set by publishers and are subject to change. Copyright 2019 Fuller Theological Seminary.