ISSM Webinar on Understanding Sexual Compulsivity: From Brain Mechanisms to Clinical Solutions
Join us for the ISSM Webinar on Understanding Sexual Compulsivity: From Brain Mechanisms to Clinical Solutions which will take place on Thursday, March 12, 2026 at 7:00 PM UTC. To see what time this is for you, click here.
Sexual compulsivity refers to patterns of sexual behavior that feel difficult to control and may continue despite negative personal, relational, or health consequences. It is a topic that often carries stigma, yet it affects many individuals and presents real challenges for clinicians and healthcare providers. This webinar brings together psychological and neurobiological perspectives to offer a clearer, inclusive understanding of sexual compulsivity and how it can be treated.
In the first presentation we will explore how thoughts, emotions, and behavioral patterns interact to maintain compulsive sexual behavior. The focus will be on practical therapeutic approaches that help individuals regain control, improve emotional regulation, and support lasting change.
The second presentation will examine what brain science tells us about compulsive behavior. We will look at how reward systems and impulse control mechanisms are involved, and how this knowledge can guide medical and pharmacological treatment options.
Program
7:00 PM UTC Opening by ISSM Representative Linda Weiner (USA)
7:05 PM UTC A Psychological Framework for Treating Sexual Compulsivity by Eli Coleman (USA)
7:25 PM UTC The Neurobiology of Sexual Compulsivity and Its Medical Management by Michał Lew-Starowicz (Poland)
7:45 PM UTC Q&A led by moderators
8:15 PM UTC Estimated closing of webinar
Moderator
Linda WeinerUSA
Linda Weiner, MSW, LCSW, is the Owner of Sex Therapist St Louis, LLC and Sensate Focus Touch, LLC. Linda is a Certified Diplomate in Sex Therapy, a Supervisor in Sex Therapy & Sexuality Counseling and a CE provider for the American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors and Therapists (AASECT). She earned a B.A. in Psychology from American University and an MSW from the University of Missouri. Linda was trained and employed at Masters & Johnson Institute and served as the Director of Training & Workshops, Director of the Child Sexual Abuse Treatment Program and as a Research and Clinical Associate. She evolved into private clinical practice as a therapist specializing in sexuality and relationships while serving as an Adjunct Professor at the Brown School, Washington University in St. Louis. Linda later began publishing on Sensate Focus mindful and somatic touch techniques with co- author, Dr. Constance Avery-Clark. Following publication of a number of journal articles and a book chapter, their book, Sensate Focus in Sex Therapy: The Illustrated Manual was published in 2017. Linda has presented nationally and internationally and has been interviewed by a number of media outlets including The New York Times, CNN and VICE. Her current interest is in transmitting information about the use of Sensate Focus techniques to physicians and Allied Health Professionals who represent the first contact with people struggling with sexual problems.
Presenter
Eli ColemanUSA
Eli Coleman, PhD.
Professor and Director Emeritus, Eli Coleman Institute for Sexual and Gender Health, Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, University of Minnesota Medical School
Eli Coleman, PhD is professor and director emeritus of the Eli Coleman Institute for Sexual and Gender Health, Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, University of Minnesota Medical School in Minneapolis. The naming the institute in his honor occurred on May 12, 2023.
He is the author of numerous articles and books on compulsive sexual behavior, sexual offenders, sexual orientation, gender dysphoria, chemical dependency and family intimacy and on the psychological and pharmacological treatment of a variety of sexual dysfunctions and disorders. Professor Coleman is one of the founding editors of the International Journal of Transgenderism and is the founding and current editor of the International Journal of Sexual Health.
He is one of the past-presidents of the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality (SSSS), the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), the World Association for Sexual Health, the International Academy for Sex Research and the Society for Sex Therapy and Research. He has been a frequent technical consultant on sexual health issues to the World Health Organization (WHO), the Pan American Health Organization (the regional office of WHO), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Presenter
Michał Lew-StarowiczPoland
Michał Lew-Starowicz MD, PhD, Assoc. Professor, FECSM
Michal Lew-Starowicz is a Medical Doctor, Associate Professor and Head of the Department of Psychiatry at the Centre of Postgraduate Medical Education, Warsaw, Poland.
Since beginning of his scientific career Michal Lew-Starowicz was involved in interdisciplinary studies integrating somatic diseases, mental disorders and sexual functioning. His recent research interests include compulsive sexual behavior with focus on the neuroimaging and pharmacological studies. He has published papers, books and book chapters, as well as educates physicians, psychologists, psychotherapists and nurses in psychiatry and sexual medicine.
Michal Lew-Starowicz is a Fellow of the European Committee of Sexual Medicine and member of the Executive Committee of the European Society for Sexual Medicine. He is also a board-certified psychotherapist and supervisor of sexual therapy certified by the Polish Sexological Society. He works in the field of sexual medicine with both men and women with sexual dysfunctions, couples and with transgender care. He leads an interdisciplinary team at the Lew-Starowicz Therapy Centre in Warsaw, Poland. Michal Lew-Starowicz is a member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of Sexual Medicine, Sexual Health and Compulsivity, and International Journal of Sexual Health. Privately, an enthusiast of active travel and an amateur triathlete.
