Naked in Public: A Memoir of Recovery From Sex Addiction and Other Temporary Insanities

by Staci L Sprout

Overview

IN THIS INTENSELY PERSONAL MEMOIR, Staci Sprout offers a vulnerable account of her recovery journey from the painful world of sexual intrigue and addiction.

She was an honors student and cheerleader, and later a talented young social worker, but her life had a dark twist even her closest friends didn't suspect. Childhood sexual abuse and exposure to pornography had ignited a drive to be sexual that eventually threatened to unravel her sanity and her life. Desperate for relief, she tried psychotherapy, hypnotism, bodywork, and traditional and pagan spirituality. Nothing helped until a near-death experience became a turning point and she found her way into the rooms of 12-Step recovery for sex addiction.

Staci's story reveals what can happen when a woman refuses to give up in her fight for dignity and freedom. The wisdom that emerges will be both a roadmap and inspiration for anyone, male or female, who struggles with sexual addiction - and to their loved ones.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780996266819
Publisher:	Recontext Media
Publication date:	12/12/2015
Pages:	376
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.78(d)

About the Author

Anastasia (Staci) Sprout, MSW is a retired psychotherapist and certified sex addiction therapist (CSAT) from Seattle with over thirty years of experience as a therapist and social worker in a variety of settings, from community mental health and hospitals to private clinical practice. Her practice has focused on helping individuals, groups and couples in recovery from sex/pornography, love and relationship addictions. Her book titled Naked in Public: A Memoir of Recovery from Sex Addiction and Other Temporary Insanities is about her own recovery. She is currently a coach in the areas of intimacy, sexual recovery, and helping survivors heal from organized extreme abuse. More information available at www.stacisprout.com or www.soaarglobal.com.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents
Disclaimer
Dedication
Preface
Introduction

Part One: Looking Good, Feeling Bad (Before Sexual Recovery)
Chapter 1: A Dark Family Legacy
Chapter 2: Nancy Drew and Other Role Models
Chapter 3: Spacey Staci
Chapter 4: My First Psychiatrist
Chapter 5: Guys Only Want One Thing
Chapter 6: Drinking, Eating, and Cheating
Chapter 7: My First Psycho-Therapist
Chapter 8: Shamanism and Nightmares
Chapter 9 Hypnotherapy
Chapter 10: Near-Death Inspires "Termination"
Chapter 11: So I'm Dating a Sex Addict
Chapter 12: Codependency 101: This Is Bigger Than I Thought

Part Two: Light in the Shadows (Getting Into Sexual Recovery)
Chapter 13: Sex Addiction Recovery 101: Welcome!
Chapter 14: Love Addiction Recovery 101: What's an Intrigue?
Chapter 15: Sexual Sobriety Defined
Chapter 16: Haircut and Gay Allies
Chapter 17: 9/11 Despair
Chapter 18: Step One: Powerlessness
Chapter 19: Step Two: Coming to Believe
Chapter 20: Step Three: A God of My Understanding
Chapter 21: Lead with Your Vulnerability
Chapter 22: Another Round to Sex (and Love) Addiction
Chapter 23: Resentment and Relapse
Chapter 24: Drum Circle

Part Three: Deep Spirit Dawning (Recovery Takes Hold)
Chapter 25: Amends and Tears of Light
Chapter 26: Breakup
Chapter 27: Journey to Pagan Places
Chapter 28: Applied Christianity
Chapter 29: Certified Sex Addiction Therapist (CSAT)
Chapter 30: Monsters and Magic in Montreal
Chapter 31: Dating Disclosures
Chapter 32: Lifespan Integration Brings Empathy
Chapter 33: Confronting Dad's "Silent Seduction"
Chapter 34: Letter to Mom: I Needed You
Chapter 35: Mom's Near-Death and New Beginnings
Chapter 36: What All the Fuss Was About
Author's Note
Gratitudes

Appendices
Appendix A: Am I a Sex Addict?
Appendix B: The Twelve Steps of Sex Addicts Anonymous
Appendix C: Are Women Safe in 12-Step Sexual Recovery Meetings?
Appendix D: Skills for Dealing with Unwanted Staring (Theirs or Yours)
Appendix E: What to Do If Your Boyfriend or Girlfriend Tells You They Are a Sex Addict
Appendix F: Full Letter to My Father About Covert Sexual Abuse
Resources on Sex Addiction and Much More!
About the Author

Editorial Reviews

Throughout Naked in Public, Sprout writes with an open, honest, and highly compassionate voice. Because of this, the book is both compelling and enjoyable to read - except of course for the occasional jolts of "Wow, I did that too" that almost any sexually compulsive reader, regardless of gender, is certain to experience. Those little reminders are never fun. However, they are necessary as reminders of what it was like and what it could still be like without recovery. That said, the most important aspect of Naked in Public is that it presents a very real and much needed look at the pain and darkness of female sexual compulsivity, coupled with an equally real and necessary message of hope. Staci Sprout's story is proof positive that recovery, healing, and a better life are possible.
--Robert Weiss LCSW, CSAT-S, PsychologyToday.com

From the Publisher

2017-10-13
One woman's long journey out of sex addiction, among other struggles. Debut author Sprout begins her story with her childhood, and in the first chapter, she abruptly states that her maternal grandfather was a pedophile. Although the author writes that she herself never fell victim to her grandfather's abuse, she says that her formative years contained many other troubling influences, including alcoholism, religious fervor, and abusive comments from her own father. Later, while she was in college and ostensibly free from her parents, Sprout's personal life was a whirlwind that included infidelity, binge-eating and -drinking, and a growing fascination with pornography. At the same time, she began to develop an interest in mental health issues, and she eventually received a master's degree in social work. Following graduation, she was able to find work in her chosen field, but her adulthood eventually became just as complicated and troubling as her early college years. Sprout writes that she came to find herself at the mercy of a pushy therapist (who, she says, would form a bizarre attachment to the author's sister); she also abused the spending power of credit cards and ended up in a long-term relationship with a jazz musician and self-proclaimed sex addict named Jason. His open identification as someone who was addicted to sex initially shocked her: "the second I heard the words ‘sex addict,' I started getting overriding input from normally dark corridors inside my mind." As time went by, though, she wound up applying the same label to herself. Some details of the author's past aren't graphically described in this memoir; for instance, readers are told of Sprout's obsession with pornography, but it doesn't reveal very much about the specifics of that obsession. Instead, the focus of this book is on the author's recovery. The crux of the story involves Sprout's attempts to obtain some level of normalcy in her life as she worked through 12-step programs, her financial difficulties, and the process of making peace with members of her family. It's depicted as having been a long and difficult battle overall, although it wasn't without its surprises, as well. The author finds moments of comic relief in New Age practices and incompatible mental health professionals; take, for instance, a member of a drum circle who says of a clothing-optional solstice celebration, "There's drumming there, right? What could go wrong?" That said, the tone of the book is an earnest one, and the author's point of view is honest and relatable. A curious reader who fears that he or she might be suffering from similar problems, or who knows someone else who is, couldn't expect to find a more welcoming place to begin their investigation than this memoir. Throughout, the author is courageously frank about her own past as well as her family's. In her story, readers will see that, even with the aid of sponsors and well-established protocols, recovery is not a simple or glamorous process. An informative look at what it means to overcome addiction.

Kirkus Reviews