As a counselor, I get a lot of clients who are worried about intimacy and sex. Romance books are a lovely escape from reality, and can help reduce your stress from daily frustrations. And, you can even learn a few tricks to enhance your relationship. The danger comes in if you begin to believe in the fantasy, compare your real-life partner to a fictional character, and become dissatisfied and feel unfulfilled. One of the attractive things about romance heroes is that they do all the work, but in a real-life relationship with a real man, you probably have to get the ball rolling and let him know what you want.

Our culture is saturated with unrealistic depictions of love, relationship and family. From celebrity debacles to overblown movie romances, as well as highly exaggerated depictions and expectations about beauty, romance and sex, the media is bombarding us with images and ideas that are the exact opposite of what works in marriage. Look around at the "beautiful