By Jonathan Decker, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Author's note: I have a great respect for the beliefs of others and have learned much from them. Although I am a devout Latter-day Saint, I do not impose my beliefs upon my clients and I support their worldviews in therapy. I include this article here so that all of my writings can be found in one place. This article originally appeared in ...[Read More]
3 Keys to Thriving as an LDS Single
Is Your Marriage Built to Last? How to Know For Sure.
By Jonathan Decker (Clinical director, LMFT) I recently appeared on The HD Radio Show with Bryan Hyde to discuss the principles and practices of lasting marriages, including smart dating before marriage and healthy sexuality within that relationship. We also touched on building strong step-families and followed up on our previous discussion about Utah declaring pornography to be public health cris ...[Read More]
Forgiveness Doesn’t Mean Trust
By Jonathan Decker, Clinical director, LMFT There seems to be a widespread belief, especially among those who've hurt others, that with forgiveness comes a restoration of trust. In other words, if the offended individual doesn't trust the offender and resume the same relationship with them, then the offended has not truly forgiven. Nothing could be further from the truth. Forgiveness is nothing mo ...[Read More]
Are You Keeping Your Spouse from Changing?
Want your partner to change? You might accidentally be hurting your cause. Here's what to do differently.
Why Bad Boys and Wild Girls are Overrated
By Jonathan Decker, Clinical Director, LMFT Whether it’s art imitating life or vice versa, society at large seems to agree with a prevalent theme of pop culture: nice guys and good girls are boring, while bad boys and “girls gone wild” are attractive and exciting. Allow me to challenge this frothy fiction with the potency of reality: there is nothing more attractive than someone with a ...[Read More]
Why the “Bored Couple at the Restaurant” May be the Happiest
By Jonathan Decker, Clinical Director, LMFT There may be no greater argument against lifelong monogamy than the bored couple in the restaurant. “Oh heaven, please don't let us end up like them,” you may have thought as you observe them silently picking at their food, looking at their phones, or vacantly scanning the restaurant for something presumably more interesting than their partne ...[Read More]
4 Ways to Avoid Abusive Relationships
Four keys to help you date smart and avoid jerks.
SHAUN THE SHEEP Family Movie Review
Review by Jonathan Decker (Family therapist, film critic) WHAT’S SHAUN THE SHEEP ABOUT? A herd of sheep and their canine friend seek their amnesiac owner in the big city. IS IT ANY GOOD? (GRADE: A) The laughs flow relentlessly in this dialogue-free riot from Aardman Studios (Chicken Run, Wallace and Gromit). The craftsmanship of the stop-motion animation is exceptional, the music is perfect, the c ...[Read More]