Freedom Begins Here

"I wear many hats in many different venues…but all as a counselor. I am a Christian Counselor with a local private practice, a Middle School Counselor at a public middle school, a Family Ministries Coordinator for my church and I serve as a council member for my denomination’s Family Ministries department. I have also been interviewed on the radio and made several television appearances.

All I can say is “WOW!” The Freedom Begins Here DVD Training Diagnosis and Treatment of Sexual Addiction series is the most exhaustive and most comprehensive training I have ever received on the topic of sexual addiction! What an incredible resource. Every church, every Pastor and every counselor needs this training.

I have recommended to my denomination that we train and furnish every one of our pastors in every one of our churches with this information. We, as Christians can no longer hide our head in the sand; it’s time that we face the problem of sexual addiction head-on…first in our churches—and then in our communities. With this training NO ONE has an excuse.

I am a recovering sex addict and have been recovered through the grace of God since 1999. This training has really ministered to me: both personally and professionally through the professionally produced video teaching segments and interviews and the informative and colorful printed materials. The information is rock-solid and scientifically based.

What an incredible resource. Thank you Dr. Laaser and Freedom Begins Here for your uncompromisingly bold vision to remove any and all obstacles to ministering to the needs of both our churches and our communities.

God bless you and your ministry!"

Omar L. Miranda, M.Ed.
Certified Christian Counselor
Abundant Life Ministries
Certified School Counselor

"This is the #1 issue that I have in counseling today - I see it each and every week, and sometimes in back to back counseling sessions. Nothing surprises me any longer in this arena - and it is damaging and destroying homes at an alarming rate, and the church as a whole has been totally passive in this regard.

Freedom Begins Here is presented in a very understandable and yet deeply professional way. I am considered the #1 expert on Sexual Addiction at Second Baptist Church, Houston, Texas under the leadership of Dr. Ed Young with over 41,000 members.

I have found that the more I counsel, the more I don't know, but one thing is for sure, the statistics of addiction are higher than the statistics presented in the Freedom Begins Here series."

Benno J. Bauer
Pastor
Second Baptist Church
Houston, Texas

"As a licensed professional counselor and a marriage and family therapist, I had run into the issue of sexual addiction several times. Up to about 18 months ago, I under treated the men who saw me in regard to this issue. Even though I had started an accountability group for men with sexual addiction almost 7 years ago, I really didn't understand how it was truly an addiction. Then I began to read books by Patrick Carnes and Mark Laaser. As couples began to visit me for counseling I began to ask questions about pornography or other signs of possible addictive behavior. I was amazed at how many couples had some form of addiction interfering with their marriage.

With the help of Mark Laaser's training program on Sexual Addiction, Freedom Begins Here, I now feel much more equipped to deal with those struggling with sexual addiction. We have, at Amarillo South Church, the only Christ centered sexual addiction group in the area. As I work with men individually, I now have a clear understanding of the addiction and what the process is for recovery. Thank you, Mark, for turning your personal struggles into a great ministry.

The most helpful part of the training was identifying the process needed for recovery and learning about the sexual addiction cycle.

Wib Newton
Licensed Professional Counselor
Marriage and Family Therapist
Amarillo South Church
Amarillo, TX

"One of the most helpful lessons I learned from Freedom Begins Here is the valuable and indispensable part support groups play in helping someone who is sexually addicted. They become the weekly encouragement and practical behavioral changing place for the addict. I have definitely made local support groups a higher priority in my counseling practice. It is a benefit to my clients and to my practice.

Freedom Begins Here is a marvelous learning aide. Sexual Addiction is an area that every therapist must become better acquainted with—particularly within the church community where such issues are surrounded with guilt and shame."

Ron Jackson
Therapist
Journeys Counseling Ministry
Cypress, CA

"I am a lawyer and Christian conciliator, and I work with victims of sexual abuse and with organizations helping to rescue victims of human trafficking. In the course of this work, it became obvious that we need to address the demand side of this problem. I met a psychologist who treats men who are struggling with sexual addiction, and he suggested the course with Freedom Begins Here. I completed the course in December and received my Certificate of Completion on Christmas weekend.

Prior to taking this course, I was aware that there were many men and women in our churches and elsewhere who are really struggling with sexual addiction. The course helped me see just how prevalent it is, and how great the need is for people to be trained in diagnosing and treating this disease. Nearly 2/3rds of all Christian men and 4/10ths of men pastors are struggling with this to some extent; and nearly 1/3rd of all addicts are women.

The course was excellent in laying out in detail the diagnostic criteria and tests available for diagnosing whether someone has a sexual addiction, and for assessing where the root of the problem lies and how to treat it. It shows how the brain that is addicted to pornography and other sexual stimuli is just like a brain that is addicted to cocaine; but that the good news is it is possible to transform the brain and begin to recover from this addiction.

Shortly before taking this course, a church that I have done conciliation work with, held a four-week course for its men on Internet pornography and sexual addiction. After that and after having started the course with Freedom Begins Here, men started coming to me for help, and the knowledge and skills I learned from the course have been enormously helpful. I have also been counseling a family where the ex-husband and another family member has struggled with this issue. So my training has been invaluable and very timely.

In addition, last Fall I was invited to appear as a guest speaker on a Cable TV program in Ossining, NY called "Friends of St. Maria Goretti." I was interviewed in November and December 2006 on the topic of human trafficking, and again in January 2007 on the topic of sexual abuse, and in the course of these interviews, I discussed some of what I learned from the course by Freedom Begins Here about sexual addiction. As a result, the church and individuals are far more aware of the need to address this issue, and of the need for people trained in this area to minister to those who are struggling with this disease.

I am a Certification Candidate with the Institute for Christian Conciliation (ICC), a division of Peacemaker Ministries, and I have highly recommended that the ICC grant credit for completion of this course for all Certification Candidates and Certified Christian Conciliators seeking advanced training in this area. I highly recommend it for all ministers, pastors, and priests, and particularly those who minister to families that are being torn apart over this issue."

Dr. Stephen M. De Luca, SJD
Christian Conciliation Service of NY
100 Park Avenue, Suite 1600
New York, NY 10017
Tel: (212) 880-2616
Fax: (212) 880-6499
stephen.deluca@conciliatorny.com
www.conciliatorny.com