Gay Man in Straight Marriage an 'Ex-Gay' Therapist?

Josh Weed, who bills himself as a gay man in a happy heterosexual marriage, is also a counselor who may practice "ex-gay" therapy.

Weed, a resident of Auburn, Wash., and self-described "devout Mormon," recently revealed on his blog that he is gay, but he claims that he and his wife of 10 years, Lolly, have a "healthy and robust" sex life. He says he is not bisexual, but explains his experience as follows: "Sex is about more than just visual attraction and lust and it is about more than just passion and infatuation. ... Basically when sex is done right, at its deepest level it is about intimacy. It is about one human being connecting with another human being they love."

ThinkProgress reports that Weed, "on his own bio, he describes helping those 'with sexual identity issues and unwanted sexual attractions and/or behaviors.'" He denies that he practices so-called reparative therapy, designed to change a person's sexual orientation and discredited by mainstream mental health groups. He claims that he encourages clients to accept their sexual orientation, whatever it is, but helps them make decisions about acting on it.

Nonetheless, this type of therapy is harmful, ThinkProgress notes: "The harms of ex-gay therapy are as much the result of denying or refusing to act on one's sexual orientation as of actually trying to change it. ... The language of 'unwanted sexual attractions and/or behaviors' is uniquely used by those who advocate ex-gay therapy, as it implies that a person's sexual orientation is somehow separate from the core of their identity and can be treated as such with behavioral adjustment."

Truth Wins Out, an organization that works to expose practitioners of "ex-gay" therapy, goes further, calling Weed "a total fraud." "These 'ex-gay' types will do and say anything deceive suckers into imbibing on their lie," writes Truth Wins Out's Wayne Besen in a blog post.

Read more here.