Hello, GYE!

I'm so excited for having reached this point and experiencing the cleanest, most honest and most growing 3 months in my entire life, or whatever I called "life" before now. Death, perhaps.

What helped me? The forum. The dedicated, constant posters, moderators and Dov, for always-open communication channels regardless of location and profession. The forum friends didn't preach chiddushim to me, but rather made me realize that which I already knew, and motivated me to take steps I was too scared to before.

I am now BH in a good recovery fellowship with SAA here in SA (South Africa) and have so many more connections and people to open up with, that my "safety net" has never been as strong. I am learning every day how to surrender my lust and my ego and am slowly feeling the thrill of actually dealing with life's stresses as opposed to hiding and using my (least) favourite drug!

To my absolute delight, I realised my overeating was NOT an addiction and did NOT compel me to join OA as well. Within these three months, after having hit a "rock bottom" overeating during Sukkos, I have eaten better, exercised and become a more fulfilled human being. I feel my success in that area is because of pearls of wisdom and mindsets gleaned from GYE and SAA. I finish long runs One Step at a Time! I ask God to help me up that tiring hill. And then sneak-in asking Him for a clean day, to remove my lust, and to help me serve Him.

I believe it's important to have a mitzvas Asei (exercise, learning, something positive) in tandem with the lo ta'aseh of refraining from lustful behaviours. I've tried the latter alone in the past, especially when focusing on it meant neglecting other areas, ie overeating and not exercising, and it has not been good for me. I grow better holistically.

In the incident with the Moabite women in the Torah, Pinchas stepped to the plate. And made a bold step. A zealous step. And he saved a dead situation.

This was the last test before entry into Eretz Yisroel. If Ma'aseh Avos Siman l'Banim, then what we face in our generation is the final frontier. It's unsalvagable unless we make bold steps. And GYE has done that. You are saving the entire world and pushing us all through to the Geulah, bim'Heira b'Yameinu!

I thank Hashem for your organisation and the true stepping stones to sanity! Keep up the holy work!

Hey Everyone!

I am happy to announce that this coming Tuesday March 7, from 10:45-11:30 am EST*, a new cycle for the SSA (same-sex attractions) conference call will begin! If you struggle with SSA please join us, especially if you have never attended these calls before. If you already have and want to go through the cycle again, you are no doubt welcome to join too!

These calls aim to provide a balanced, clear, and understandable perspective regarding what men can do to move beyond their struggle of unwanted same-sex attractions. Some of the discussions include: why we may develop sexual attractions all together, how to reduce lust towards men and reach a better sense of peace and wholeness within ourselves, what kind of process can we take to ultimately develop attractions for the opposite-sex, and how we can all go on this journey with respect, authenticity, and integrity within Torah and religious values.

You can find all of the call details at this link: https://guardyoureyes.com/component/zoo/item/ssa-conference

May we all have much hatzlacha and bracha moving forward and I look forward to having you on our new cycle this coming Tuesday!

-Jonathan Hoffman, MSW - Leader of GYE SSA Conference Calls
(If you have any questions about this call, please don't hesitate to contact me at jhoffmantherapy@gmail.com)

*Please note: This new cycle was originally announced to begin February 28, but that is no longer the case and this coming Tuesday March 7 will be the 1st call of this cycle

Over the past few months, I have been quoted (and misquoted!) several times in various publications regarding the Orthodox Jewish position on homosexuality and mental health treatment. There are two major areas of concern regarding this hotly debated topic. The first area is that many in the secular world simply find it hard to accept Orthodoxy’s intolerance toward homosexual behavior. The very idea that we label a certain behavior as immoral and pathological is offensive to people with a secular values base. The second area of concern is about whether reparative therapy is actually helpful, ethical and even if it can cause harm.

Zissy's Big Book Study Group For Struggling Women

Do you have a problem with obsessive and compulsive porn use? Have you seriously tried the tools on GYE and feel that you are not getting better? Maybe it’s time to consider joining a 12-Step program.

Porn Anonymous (PA)
If you’re compulsively acting-out with pornography and masturbation we suggest you explore joining Porn Anonymous (PA). If you need help deciding whether to join PA, call Michael at 347-699-2368, or email help@pornanonymous.org to schedule a time to talk. For more information visit pornanonymous.org (Hebrew: p-a.org.il / Yiddish: pa-yid.org).

Sexaholics Anonymous (SA)
If your compulsive acting-out has progressed beyond the screen (with other people, paid sexual services, etc.) we suggest you explore joining Sexaholics Anonymous (SA). To figure out if SA is for you, call Dov at 917-414-8205, or email Dov at dov@guardyoureyes.org to schedule a time to talk. For more information visit www.sa.org.