THE CENTER FOR RELATIONSHIPS
AND SEXUALITY
THE CENTER FOR RELATIONSHIPS
AND SEXUALITY
David Roth, PhD
I am a sex therapist and pastoral psychotherapist specializing in complex sexual, intimacy, relationship, and spiritual concerns.
My work is particularly suited to people whose problems do not fit a standard formula: difficult-to-discuss desires, nontraditional relationships, troubling patterns of behavior, conflicts involving sexuality and conscience, spiritually significant experiences, or longstanding problems that have not responded to ordinary approaches.
Training and experience
I received postgraduate training in sex and relationship therapy at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School/UMDNJ. I earned my doctorate from the University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome and completed fellowship training in psychoanalysis at the NYU Psychoanalytic Institute, affiliated with the NYU School of Medicine.
I also completed a residency in clinical pastoral care at Lehigh Valley Hospital and hold professional certifications as a diplomate in pastoral psychotherapy, pastoral supervision, and clinical pastoral care through the College of Pastoral Supervision and Psychotherapy, and as a pastoral psychotherapist from the Spiritual Care Association.
I am a clinical fellow of the International Neuropsychoanalysis Society. My work is informed by psychoanalysis, affective neuroscience, anthropology, pastoral psychotherapy, spirituality, semiotics, systems theory and many years of work with people facing emotional, relational, sexual, medical, moral, and spiritual crises.
For many years I directed spiritual care and clinical training programs within major health-care institutions where I served as a clinical supervisor and program director, and I have been a graduate school professor of both spirituality and clinical chaplaincy.
My way of working
I listen for more than symptoms.
Sexual and relationship problems occur within a whole life: a body, a personal history, a family, a culture, a moral world, a spiritual or philosophical outlook, and a network of relationships. They may involve experiences and meanings that have never previously been put into words.
My work is exploratory but not aimless, compassionate but not evasive. I try to create the conditions in which something difficult can be spoken, thought about, and felt honestly.
I am comfortable with complexity and do not require a person’s intimate or spiritual life to conform to conventional assumptions. I also take boundaries, consent, responsibility, and the effects of our choices upon others seriously.
The aim is to help you understand yourself and your relationships well enough to live with greater freedom, responsibility, pleasure, intimacy, and coherence.
Pastoral psychotherapy
Pastoral psychotherapy is sometimes mistakenly understood as psychotherapy conducted within a particular religion. That is not how I practice it.
The word pastoral refers to care for the whole person, including those dimensions of life that may be described as spiritual, existential, sacred, moral, or concerned with meaning.
Some people come with an established religious faith. Others identify as spiritual but not religious. Some are skeptical of both religion and spirituality but know that sexuality and relationship involve questions deeper than symptom relief.
All are welcome.
Professional status
I practice as a sex therapist and pastoral psychotherapist.
I do not represent myself as a marriage and family therapist, licensed professional counselor, licensed clinical social worker, or state-licensed psychologist. My professional preparation, background, experience, and certifications are described above so that prospective clients can decide whether my approach and qualifications are appropriate for their needs.
The history of the Center
The Center for Relationships and Sexuality was founded in 2005 by Dr. Carole Moretz and Dr. David Roth in eastern Pennsylvania. The work of the Center later expanded to New York City, Phoenix, the San Francisco Bay Area, and online.
Carole was a clinical psychologist, registered nurse, marital therapist, and certified sex therapist. She brought to the Center the seasoned clinical expertise, leadership, warmth, and judgment without which it would not have come into being. When Dr. Roth was beginning his work in sex therapy, her experience and guidance were foundational to both the Center and his own development as a clinician.
Carole Moretz, PsyD, MSN, died in 2022.
The Center now continues as Dr. Roth’s limited private practice.