UNK Counseling Care and Women’s Center, 308.865.8248
Sex addiction and pornography is the topic of “Understanding Addiction to Sex and Internet Pornography,” a presentation at the University of Nebraska at Kearney sponsored by the UNK Women’s Center on Thursday, April 12.
Presented by Robert Weiss, executive director and founder of the Sexual Recovery Institute in Los Angeles, the event will begin at 7 p.m. in Copeland Hall, Room 142. Free to UNK students, the event will also feature a book signing from 6:15-6:45 p.m. before Weiss begins speaking.
Patricia Durner, associate director of the Women’s Center, said Weiss is in expert in the field of sex addiction, and the purpose of the event is to “provide education and further understanding of addiction to sex and Internet pornography.”
Durner said Weiss’ topic relates to the Women’s Center, because in his book, “Untangling the Web,” Weiss indicates that approximately 25 percent of the members of 12-step recovery programs for sex addiction are women, signifying that sex addiction affects both women and men.
Weiss has provided commentary on numerous television shows including The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Today Show, Dateline NBC, CNN, 20/20 and ABC World News Tonight. He was also featured in a Discovery Channel program “Sex Mania” and was interviewed for an upcoming Showtime special on the role of pornography in American life.
In addition to “Untangling the Web,” Weiss has authored “Cruise Control: Understanding Sex Addiction in Gay Men” and co-authored “Cybersex Exposed: Simple Fantasy to Obsession.”
A UCLA clinical social work graduate, Mr. Weiss did his post-graduate training in sexual addiction and sexual offending under the direction of Dr. Patrick Carnes.
Weiss is a former board member of the National Council for Sexual Addiction and Compulsivity, and he has presented for the UCLA Neuro-Psychiatric Institute, American Association of Sex Educators and Therapists, National Association of Social Work, National Institutes of Health and the U.S. military.
Weiss also provides clinical training and program development for numerous multi-addiction treatment centers, such as The Gentle Path, WellSprings Vancouver, Sierra Tucson and The Life Healing Center.
In addition to Weiss’ presentation, the Women’s Center will also be sponsoring a brown bag luncheon Wednesday, April 11, from noon to 1 p.m. in the Nebraskan Student Union Cedar Room. The discussion topic will be self-defense and personal safety.
Plans are also being made for a sexual assault awareness event later in the month. The event will be held in the Nebraskan Student Union Atrium and will be sponsored by the Women’s Center and the SAFE Center.
