Remote Versus In-Person Group Therapy for Couples Distressed by Low/No Sexual Desire/Frequency or Sexual Desire Discrepancy: A Response to COVID-19

Abstract

Sexual desire problems are among the most common in sex therapists’ offices and considered among the most difficult to treat. Prior to COVID-19, we had developed an 8-week, 16-h group couples sex therapy approach to help couples distressed by sexual desire discrepancy, by targeting the couple rather than the identified patient with low desire. Because of the pandemic, we tailored our approach to offer it remotely. To our knowledge, this is the first investigation of a group therapy for couples via teletherapy. In total, 141 couples completed the therapy, 75 prior to COVID-19 and 66 during, including 23 sexual, gender and relationship minority couples. Participants completed the New Sexual Satisfaction Scale at four time-points and provided written feedback. Results suggested that this therapy is effective in person and online at post-test (p < .001) and at 6-month follow-up (p < .001). Participants described positive changes in authenticity, vulnerability, trust, playfulness, embodiment and empathic communication, especially during times of conflict. This brief, affordable and accessible intervention can be used to deal with sexual desire problems. This approach enhances sexual fulfillment and enables clients to revision sexuality itself, thereby freeing them to create sex worth wanting and enduring desire.

Keywords:

• Group therapy
• teletherapy
• couples therapy
• sex therapy
• sexual desire problems

Acknowledgements

Thank you to the clients, therapists, Dr. Štulhofer and the OSE team.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

Maxime Charest is supported by a Canadian Institutes of Health Research Vanier Scholarship. There was no other funding for this study.