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An attachment injury can occur when one partner violates the assumption that they will provide comfort and caring during a moment of increased need. For injured partners, unresolved attachment injuries can underlie an enduring stress reaction and lower relationship satisfaction. However, no research has examined the associations between the perceived severity of the injury and sexual satisfaction, a central component of relationship well-being. In this cross-sectional study, we examined the direct and indirect associations between the perceived severity of the attachment injury and sexual satisfaction via injury-related stress symptoms and levels of forgiveness, in injured partners. A total of 145 adults who reported having experienced an attachment injury in their current relationship completed self-report questionnaires measuring injury severity, event-related stress, forgiveness, and sexual satisfaction. An indirect association between the perceived severity of the attachment injury and sexual satisfaction through higher injury-related stress and lower forgiveness was found via a path analysis. Results suggest that fostering forgiveness and attending to injury-related stress may be key toward sexual satisfaction in couples where a partner reports an attachment injury. Clinical implications of these results are discussed in light of theory and potential treatment strategies for addressing an attachment injury in couple's therapy.

This study examines the intermediary role of three variables (sexual mindfulness, sexual anxiety, and sexual self-esteem) in a path analysis model to explain the association between insecure attachment and sexual satisfaction. A community sample of 543 adults completed an online survey. Results supported our hypothesized integrative model, which explained 44.1% of the variance in sexual satisfaction and presented satisfactory fit indices. This study suggests that the association between attachment insecurities and lower sexual satisfaction could be partially explained by a proximal association with lower sexual mindfulness, which emphasizes the relevance of examining sexual mindfulness during the screening and treatment of people presenting low sexual satisfaction.Supplemental data for this article is available online at https://doi.org/10.1080/0092623X.2021.2011808 .

Sexual fantasies represent a vast and highly personal dimension of human sexuality that remains understudied empirically. This article used a person-oriented approach to examine the reactions of arousal and discomfort that individuals experienced in response to four proposed fantasy scenarios depicting themes of romance, power dynamics (i.e., submission and domination), pain (i.e., sadism and masochism), and sexual violence. Using an online sample of 566 adult participants (250 men and 291 women) from the general population of Canada and the U.S., four classes were identified based on reactions of arousal and discomfort toward the proposed scenarios: Indifferent (relatively low arousal and discomfort to all scenarios, 37%), Romantic (high arousal solely for the romance scenario, high discomfort toward other scenarios, 22%), Enthusiastic (high arousal and low discomfort in response to all scenarios, 26%), and Dissonant (relatively high arousal and discomfort toward all scenarios, 15%). These classes were then compared to examine differences in terms of the following psychosexual characteristics: gender, experiences of childhood sexual abuse, sexual compulsion, and romantic attachment. Findings illustrated distinct patterns of reactions toward fantasies and confirmed the presence of links between reactions toward sexual fantasies, psychosexual characteristics, and traumatic life experiences. This suggests that the relationship between individuals and their sexual fantasies may be indicative of their overall relationship with sexuality.

The present chapter will discuss the neurobiology of insomnia. After briefly defining insomnia according to the DSM-5 and the ICSD-2 previous subtypes, prevalence of the disorder will be introduced. Then this chapter will present the sleep-wake regulation system to identify how insomnia might be developed and what is impaired in suffering individuals, especially regarding the flip-flop switch. Techniques used to study the neurobiology of insomnia such as electroencephalography (EEG), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI, fMRI), positron emission tomography (PET), and event-related potentials (ERPs) will be presented. A discussion on the different phenotypes of insomnia, including recent developments in our knowledge of short sleepers and the challenged group of insomnia sufferers (INS), will follow. Finally, the status of our understanding of daily functioning in insomnia and cortical areas involved will be briefly presented. Future directions will conclude this chapter, including an interesting perspective on attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and insomnia. Note that this chapter deals only with insomnia not comorbid with any other disorders (psychiatric, mental, medical, etc.).

Considering the heightened risk of adults who have experienced childhood cumulative trauma (CCT) to suffer from depressive symptoms, the present study aimed to investigate mindfulness and dissociation as possible mechanisms implicated in this relationship. A total of 234 clients seeking psychotherapy for sexual and/or relational difficulties completed self-reported questionnaires as part of the evaluation phase within their treatment. The assessment tools evaluated the experience of childhood trauma, depressive symptoms, mindfulness levels, and dissociative symptoms. Results of structural equation modeling indicated that the link between CCT and depressive symptoms was fully mediated by both mindfulness and dissociation. In light of our results, it is recommended to assess systematically the presence of CCT, depressive symptoms, and dissociation in clients seeking help for sexual and/or relational issues, even though their primary motive may seem unrelated. Findings suggest that treatments focusing on fostering mindfulness might be beneficial in reducing depressive symptoms for individuals who experienced CCT.

Sexual fantasies represent a vast and highly personal dimension of human sexuality that remains understudied empirically. This article used a person-oriented approach to examine the reactions of arousal and discomfort that individuals experienced in response to four proposed fantasy scenarios depicting themes of romance, power dynamics (i.e., submission and domination), pain (i.e., sadism and masochism), and sexual violence. Using an online sample of 566 adult participants (250 men and 291 women) from the general population of Canada and the U.S., four classes were identified based on reactions of arousal and discomfort toward the proposed scenarios: Indifferent (relatively low arousal and discomfort to all scenarios, 37%), Romantic (high arousal solely for the romance scenario, high discomfort toward other scenarios, 22%), Enthusiastic (high arousal and low discomfort in response to all scenarios, 26%), and Dissonant (relatively high arousal and discomfort toward all scenarios, 15%). These classes were then compared to examine differences in terms of the following psychosexual characteristics: gender, experiences of childhood sexual abuse, sexual compulsion, and romantic attachment. Findings illustrated distinct patterns of reactions toward fantasies and confirmed the presence of links between reactions toward sexual fantasies, psychosexual characteristics, and traumatic life experiences. This suggests that the relationship between individuals and their sexual fantasies may be indicative of their overall relationship with sexuality.