You don’t have to figure this out alone. Confidential, compassionate help is available.
At Therapy Utah, we offer faith-sensitive therapy for Latter-day Saints and other people of faith who are navigating sexual struggles, betrayal, and shame. We understand that for many members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, faith is not a side issue — it is central to both the pain and the path forward. This guide explains how clinically sound, values-respecting therapy works, how it can fit alongside your relationship with your bishop, and how to move toward healing without abandoning what you believe.
Why Faith-Sensitive Therapy Matters
Therapy that honors your beliefs is not just more comfortable — the evidence suggests it can be more effective for clients who want it. A comprehensive meta-analysis of 97 studies found that psychotherapy adapted to a client’s religious and spiritual values produced meaningful improvements in psychological wellbeing and even greater gains in spiritual wellbeing compared with secular approaches (Captari et al., 2018, Journal of Clinical Psychology). In other words, you do not have to choose between good clinical care and your faith. The two can work together.
To be clear about our role: we are licensed mental-health professionals, not ecclesiastical authorities, and we do not speak for the Church. We respect your beliefs and your leaders, and we keep clinical work and spiritual guidance in their proper lanes — complementary, not competing.
When Faith and Sexuality Collide: Shame, Scrupulosity, and “Perceived Addiction”
For devout members, the distress around pornography or sexual behavior is often intense — but research shows that distress and a felt sense of “addiction” are not always driven by the behavior itself. In a landmark study, religiosity and moral disapproval strongly predicted whether someone felt addicted to pornography, even after accounting for how much they actually used (Grubbs et al., 2015, Archives of Sexual Behavior). A later preregistered study further linked self-perceived pornography addiction to religiosity, obsessive–compulsive symptoms, scrupulosity, and shame (Grubbs et al., 2020, Archives of Sexual Behavior).
This matters enormously for treatment. Sometimes the core issue is genuine behavioral compulsion. Other times it is moral incongruence and shame — or scrupulosity, a form of religious obsessive–compulsive distress that no amount of “trying harder” resolves. Effective therapy carefully tells these apart, because the help that works for one can be the wrong medicine for another. You can read more about this distinction in our companion guide to sex addiction and compulsive sexual behavior.
Working With Your Bishop
Many clients come to us already meeting with their bishop, and they wonder how therapy fits in. The simple answer: your bishop and your therapist serve different, complementary roles. Your bishop supports your spiritual life and the repentance process; your therapist provides confidential clinical care for the psychological, relational, and emotional dimensions of what you are facing.
A few principles guide how we approach this:
- You are in control of information. What you share in therapy is confidential and protected by law. We coordinate with a bishop only when you ask us to and sign a written release — never automatically.
- Coordination can help. When you want it, a therapist and an ecclesiastical leader working in concert — each in their own role — can reduce confusion and support steadier progress.
- Clinical care is not a substitute for ecclesiastical counsel, and vice versa. We do not tell you how to handle the spiritual side, and we do not need your bishop to direct the clinical side.
Disclosure and Church Discipline
Questions about disclosure — to a spouse, or in the context of a membership council — are some of the most painful and high-stakes a person can face. Impulsive, unprepared disclosure can deepen trauma for everyone involved. We help clients approach these moments thoughtfully and at a healthy pace, often through a structured, clinically guided therapeutic disclosure process that protects both the person disclosing and the person receiving it.
Whatever you decide about confession or church processes is yours to make. Our job is to help you and your loved ones stay emotionally safe and to make sure honesty does not become a new source of harm. If a spouse is involved, their experience matters just as much — see the section below.
Healing Sexual Shame Without Losing Your Faith
Shame tells you that you are bad; healthy guilt tells you a behavior was harmful and can change. Therapy helps separate your worth as a person from the behaviors you want to change — a distinction that is often deeply consistent with Latter-day Saint teachings about grace and repentance. Approaches like Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) help you stop fighting shame in self-defeating ways and instead live according to your values. Notably, a randomized trial conducted at Utah State University — with a sample that was almost entirely Latter-day Saint — found ACT produced large, lasting reductions in problematic pornography use (Crosby & Twohig, 2016, Behavior Therapy).
Ready to talk to someone who understands? We’re here when you are.
Care for Spouses and Betrayal Trauma
When a partner discovers hidden sexual behavior, the result is often genuine trauma. For Latter-day Saint spouses, this can be compounded by spiritual questions and feelings of isolation within the community. Both partners deserve support — usually on parallel but distinct paths. Learn more about the stages of betrayal trauma and how our couples and marriage therapy can help rebuild trust.
How We Work
We tailor care to you, your values, and your goals. Depending on your needs, faith-sensitive treatment may include:
- Our dedicated Sex Addiction & Betrayal Trauma (SA/BT) program
- Individual therapy for shame, scrupulosity, and compulsive behavior
- Couples and marriage therapy and guided disclosure
- Coordination with your ecclesiastical leader — only with your written consent
Frequently Asked Questions
Will you tell my bishop what I share?
No. Therapy is confidential and protected by law. We contact a bishop only if you specifically ask us to and sign a release. You decide what, if anything, is shared.
Do I have to involve my bishop to get help?
Not at all. Many clients work with us independently of any ecclesiastical process. Others choose to involve their bishop. Both are completely valid.
Is my pornography use really an “addiction”?
Maybe, maybe not — and that is an important question to answer rather than assume. For some, the issue is compulsive behavior; for others, it is shame and values conflict. A careful assessment helps point you toward the help that actually fits.
You Can Heal Without Choosing Between Faith and Help
Reaching out takes courage, and you do not have to do this alone or in secret. When you are ready, we are here to help — with respect for your beliefs and confidentiality you can count on. Contact Therapy Utah to ask a question or schedule a confidential consultation.
Explore These Topics
- Working With Your Bishop
- Therapeutic Disclosure & Navigating Church Discipline
- Religious Sexual Shame & Scrupulosity
- Sex Addiction Therapy (overview)
Take the first step toward healing — reach out today.
This page is for educational purposes and is not a substitute for individualized clinical assessment, treatment, or ecclesiastical counsel. Therapy Utah is an independent mental-health practice and does not speak for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Sources: Captari et al. (2018), Journal of Clinical Psychology; Grubbs et al. (2015) and (2020), Archives of Sexual Behavior; Crosby & Twohig (2016), Behavior Therapy.