Most men who eventually seek therapy for fear of intimacy do so only after significant consequences have accumulated. A marriage may be failing, a pattern of abandoned relationships may have become undeniable, or a persistent sense of loneliness may have finally become unbearable. The delay is not surprising given that seeking therapy is itself an act of vulnerability, the very thing the fear is designed to prevent. Recognizing this contradiction does not make it easier to act on, but it does explain why so many men arrive in therapy later than they wish they had.
Dr. David Steinbok sees men at various points in this timeline. Whether the motivation is an acute crisis or a quieter realization that something has been missing for a long time, his practice in Boca Raton offers men from the Delray Beach, Florida area a confidential, private setting to begin the work. A fear of intimacy therapist for men does not expect openness on day one. The process begins where the patient is, not where the therapist thinks he should be.
