Kate Ivey Counseling

06/04/2026

Can AI replace therapy? Discover the differences between AI and human therapists, including immediacy, emotional attunement, and relationship-based healing.

Artificial intelligence is changing the way people access information, including mental health support. As a therapist who regularly uses AI myself, I see both its strengths and its limitations. AI can explain attachment styles, teach coping skills, and help people reflect on their experiences. But

03/16/2026

https://www.iveycounselingcenter.com/post/why-playfulness-increases-s*xual-desire-in-long-term-relationships

What if the key to more connection and desire in your relationship isn’t trying harder, but having more fun together? This post explores how playfulness and laughter can reignite intimacy in long-term relationships.

There’s a trend going around on social media where couples have a canvas painting night at home. Each partner paints a portrait of the other, and then they take turns revealing their paintings, often ending up in tears from laughing so hard at the discrepancy between one partner’s surprisingly g...

01/30/2026

Stress shows up in the body in more ways than we realize.

If you’ve ever wondered why anxiety can be linked to pelvic pain, urinary urgency, or discomfort with intimacy, this post breaks down the connection in a gentle, accessible way.

Bathroom Breaks as an Act of Self-CareI have often talked with clients about the importance of going to the bathroom when it is time to go to the bathroom as an act of rebellious self-care. It sounds silly, but most women I know are so busy in their day that they hold their bathroom break until the....

12/30/2025

Most people set goals for their bodies, careers, and bank accounts… but forget the one area that quietly shapes everything else: their relationship.

In my newest blog at Ivey Counseling Center, I share the 9 Life Domains framework from Your Best Year Ever and show how combining habit goals + achievement goals can restore intimacy, emotional safety, and connection in your partnership.

Your relationship doesn’t need more hard conversations.

It needs a system for turning toward each other again.

Read the full post here:

https://www.iveycounselingcenter.com/post/the-9-life-domains-how-setting-relationship-goals-can-transform-your-year

The framework for the 9 life domains used in this article comes from Your Best Year Ever by Michael Hyatt. His work offers a holistic approach to goal setting that honors the complexity of real life which is something I see reflected daily in the therapy room. When people think about goal setting, t...

12/08/2025

https://www.iveycounselingcenter.com/post/the-myth-of-natural-ease-what-breastfeeding-taught-me-about-s*xual-wellbeing

I remember believing that breastfeeding was the most natural thing in the world, something my body would instinctively know how to do. I took the breastfeeding class at the hospital, just like the birthing class, because my doctor recommended it and every first-time parent around me seemed to do the...

10/13/2025

This month we reflect on how women are bombarded with messages that leave them believing they are deficient somehow...and then they blame themselves for how they feel and attempt to bear the burden alone to "fix" what isn't actually broken.

Earlier this year, I had a client return for some maintenance sessions after taking a pause from therapy. In her email explaining the reason for her break, she wrote courageously about her exhaustion from the constant cycle of self-improvement, from always trying to be better, or even just enough.Sh...

09/08/2025

True intimacy isn’t just physical, it’s nervous system to nervous system. When we feel safe, our body shifts out of defense and into connection. Safety calms our nervous system, allowing us to be present, open, and deeply connected with another. Intimacy begins with safety.

08/12/2025

Why S*x and Intimacy? Our latest blog post offers an introduction to the importance of understanding s*x and intimacy in relationships. Check it out here: https://wix.to/7N93Lid *xualHealth

06/26/2025

Your s*xual desire isn’t just about wanting s*x—it’s about how your brain responds to context.

Emily Nagoski calls it the Dual Control Model:

Your accelerator responds to turn-ons.

Your brakes respond to turn-offs.

If you’ve ever thought, “I used to want s*x, what happened?” — this might be the key.

Get curious, not judgmental.

Communicate better with your partner.

Reclaim s*xual connection on your own terms.

You're not broken — your brain is just doing its job.

Let’s work with it, not against it.

06/11/2025

Addressing intimacy issues is always soooo worth it… because if you can talk about intimacy with your partner, you can talk about anything.