Brave Love, Great Sex

“Brave Love, Great Sex is a practical tour guide through the relational geographies of security, adventure, and aliveness. With exercises, case examples, and guiding questions, George Faller and Laurie Watson provide partners the tools to chart new territories together.”
— Esther Perel, psychotherapist, author, and host of Where Should We Begin


“George and Laurie bring something essential to the conversation about sex in long-term relationships: they make it make sense. This book takes one of the most painful and confusing areas for couples and organizes it into a clear, workable pattern. What looks like disinterest, pressure, or incompatibility is so often a predictable cycle rooted in attachment needs. When couples can see that, everything starts to shift.”
— Julie Menanno, MA, LCPC, LMFT, author of Secure Love


“Brave Love, Great Sex brings exceptional clarity to the often-overlooked link between emotional disconnection and sexual distress. This is a grounded, powerful guide to helping you move from protection into secure, open, and more erotic engagement where real change becomes not just possible, but sustainable.”
— Ellyn Bader, PhD, Co-Founder of The Couples Institute and Co-Creator of the Developmental Model of Couples Therapy


“I found myself captivated, deeply moved, and at times close to tears while reading Brave Love, Great Sex. Watson and Faller draw on their rich clinical experience and skillfully bring theory and empirical research to life through their therapeutic wisdom, taking readers on a thought-provoking and illuminating journey through the ways relationship conflict and sexual difficulties become intertwined. Watson and Faller go beyond insight, offering concrete and exceptionally helpful guidance for fostering deeper connection both outside and inside the bedroom.”
— Gurit Birnbaum, PhD, Professor of Psychology at Reichman University


“Brave Love, Great Sex is well written and clear–it’s full of accessible and easy-to-follow exercises and information for anyone looking for a more intimate and connected sex life. I’d recommend it to any couple who wants better communication skills and tools for sharing.
— Tammy Nelson, PhD, CEO and Founder of Integrative Sex Therapy Institute


“Suppose you are in a relationship in which one of you is constantly pursuing — for sex or for emotional closeness — and it feels like your partner is constantly withdrawing. You cannot believe how incredibly insensitive your partner’s responses — or lack of responses — are to your loneliness. Sounds familiar? Then hurry to read this new book by Faller and Watson! At last: Mutual understanding!”
— Peggy J. Kleinplatz, Ph.D., Professor, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Editor, New Directions in Sex Therapy


“Brave Love, Great Sex is a deeply humane book grounded in attachment science and in the clinical wisdom and empirical foundation of Emotionally Focused Therapy. Whether you are a clinician seeking a sophisticated extension of attachment‑based thinking into the erotic domain, or an individual or couple seeking not just better sex, but more love, safety, and aliveness in your intimate relationships, this book will undoubtedly offer you a wise, compassionate, and practical companion. Highly recommended!”
— Dr. Leanne Campbell, Co-Developer, with Susan Johnson, of Emotionally Focused Individual Therapy


“With a unique application of attachment theory to our intimate lives, this book shows us that not only does a secure relationship contribute to a better sex life, but that secure sex also contributes to a better relationship. With the added bonus of expertly tracking a single couple through the cycle, Faller and Watson leave the reader with both insight and the tools for translating that insight into action.”
— Ian Kerner, sex therapist and New York Times-bestselling author of She Comes First


“Laurie Watson and George Faller are the best in the world at what they do, and this book proves it. Brave Love, Great Sex finally connects the two conversations every couple needs to be having but rarely are. Read it together. Then read it again. “
— Casey and Meygan Caston, Co-Founders of Marriage365, authors of The Marriage Habit


“Once you understand your attachment patterns, you’ll find new ways to deepen connection with your partner, both emotionally and intimately. This book is a powerful read for anyone looking to improve their relationships.”
— Jessica Baum, LMHC, author of Anxiously Attached and Safe


“Dr. Watson and Faller offer a deeply compassionate and clinically sound guide to understanding the choreography of push-and-pull dynamics that so many couples quietly endure. Rooted in attachment science and enriched by decades of therapeutic wisdom, this book gently translates complex relational patterns into accessible, actionable insight. It’s a great guide for clinicians and a meaningful companion for couples seeking not only better sex, but a deeper sense of emotional safety, connection, and a sense of home in one another.”
— Sara Nasserzadeh, PhD, author of Love by Design


“With clarity, warmth, and clinical wisdom, Watson and Faller illuminate the patterns that keep couples stuck and offer hopeful pathways toward secure, caring, and passionate relationships. This compelling book is a valuable and engaging contribution for clinicians and readers seeking a deeper understanding of love, intimacy, and sex. It deserves a place on every must-read list and stands out as essential reading for advancing the integration of attachment science and clinical practice.”
— Mario Mikulincer, PhD, Professor of Psychology, Reichman University, and co-author of Attachment in Adulthood


“’Heart and heat meet on the bridge of care,’” Watson and Faller write, and in their remarkable book they show readers precisely how to build that bridge. With unusual warmth and clarity, Brave Love, Great Sex helps readers understand and heal the deeper patterns driving conflict, freeing them to create not just emotional safety, but enduring passion. At once informative and inspirational, it offers that rare combination of wisdom and guidance that leaves readers with greater hope and a clearer path forward.”
— Craig Malkin, PhD, author of Rethinking Narcissism, clinical psychologist, researcher, and Lecturer for Harvard Medical School


“This book thoughtfully integrates Emotionally Focused Couples Therapy with sex therapy, emphasizing intimacy, pleasure, and eroticism. It offers an important contribution for both clinicians working with couples and couples struggling to reconnect. Highly recommended.”
— Barry McCarthy, PhD, professor emeritus of psychology, diplomate in both clinical psychology and sex therapy, and author of 22 books


“Brave Love and Great Sex brilliantly guide couples through the tireless and unrewarding tangles of intimacy and love. Watson and Faller deliver practical wisdom and clear direction for uncovering hope and restoring passion to a couple’s unfulfilled desires. More than a list of techniques and tips this book meets partners at the intersection of love and sex with everyday practices that deepen trust, fire desire, and engage what is best in love.”
— James Furrow, PhD, Couple and Family Therapy Program, Seattle University, and author of Emotionally Focused Family Therapy

Laurie Watson, PhD, LMFT, AASECT Certified Sex Therapist and ICEEFT Certified Emotionally Focused Therapist

Laurie Watson has dedicated thirty-five years to exclusively working with couples’ emotional and sexual struggles. She is the author of Wanting Sex Again: How to Rekindle Desire and Heal a Sexless Marriage.

Dr. Watson is also the founder and director of Awakenings Center for Couples and Sex Therapy, a group practice in Raleigh, North Carolina. There, she offers clinical intensives for couples seeking accelerated change. Laurie is internationally recognized as a leading expert and teacher of sexual attachment.

George Faller, LMFT

George Faller is a renowned trainer of couples therapists in Emotionally Focused Therapy, as well as a sought-after supervisor and therapist. With experience as a New York firefighter during 9⁄11, George teaches therapists how to stay calm and deescalate high-conflict couples.

His online training platform, Success In Vulnerability, has trained thousands of therapists. He travels across the globe providing tactical skills for couples to create the connections they deserve.

Together, Laurie Watson and George Faller host the podcast Brave Love; Great Sex - Couple’s Therapy for Lasting Connection.

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