My husband and I went to see Dr Hawkins in December of 2012 in hopes of repairing our marriage. We agreed to attend an intensive which left me feeling even more traumatized. My husband had struggled with sexual addiction for all of our 16 years of marriage. He was a classic sex addict (not a complicated case). After an inital seemingly professional consultation, we agreed to a 2.5 day intensive.
It was during our intensive the emotional abuse began. The Dr Hawkins who led the intensive presented a very different personality than the charming one we had previously encountered. He was much less professional and almost devoid of compassion/empathy. ( Which I found to be ironic as much of our time was spent doing an exercise where we were to show empathy to one another.)
He seemed to enjoy lecturing to us as opposed to counseling us. It was the "David Hawkins” show. At one point he even asked us if we wanted to sponsor his radio program on KCIS!! As the session wore on, he grew very impatient that I was not showing more empathy toward my unfaithful husband; and he became moody, withdrawn and threatened to terminate the session at one point. Thinking of my 6 children, I felt desperate and trapped, so I put on an act and modified my behavior to fit with what pleased him (it did nothing to foster healing with my husband).
I consoled myself that I would NEVER return to him. In short, Dr David Hawkins is a manipulative, narcissist who preys in desperate Christian couples. Avoid him at all costs. Happily, we stuck it out and sought the help of another counselor who was able to help us and we remain married.
My husband participated in the CORE program with Les as the facilitator. I believe his qualifications are as a Life Coach. Lee is not married and has no children, which i feel is pertinent. Throughout the program, the facilitator did nothing more than dismiss the pain of the partner and feed the entitlement of the abusive men in his group. Personally, my husband and I agree that the program spiraled his recovery downward. I strongly recommend you do not participate in any Marriage Recovery programs.
Speaking from personal experience. If betrayal or trauma are a part of your story, do NOT look here for help. The C.O.R.E. led by Lee, did nothing but contribute to my husband's entitled attitude. Dr. Hawkins, despite his videos that lead one to believe he understands betrayal trauma...He absolutely does not. A specialist in narcissistic behavior was snowed by my covert narcissistic husband. Between the C.O.R.E. program and individual sessions with Dr. Hawkins, we spent thousands and almost lost our marriage. BEWARE!!!
After suffering years of emotional, mental, physical, psychological abuse as well as an emotional affair, I learned that my husband also had a porn addiction. We watched all of the Marriage Recovery videos on YouTube and thought it was the correct place for us to go and receive help dealing with all of this. My husband signed up for the CORE program as well as individual counseling with Dr. Hawkins. To summarize. The information and guidance given by the CORE leader, was an influence for my husband to become very entitled and relapse. The conversations regularly seemed focused on the abused wife's reaction, rather than the abuse that caused the reaction. Often times the comments were very disrespectful. During the time my husband was in this program, two of the men ended up getting divorced. The interaction with the coach leads me to believe that HE is a narcissist. Dr. Hawkins, selling programs and books, seemingly aware of trauma and abuse became focused on my husband not having sex. Even though he was clearly informed that the lying and cheating had never stopped. This was a huge red flag and my husband stopped seeing him. To reiterate the title...Dr. Hawkins and his staff do not reflect the compassion and understanding exhibited in the videos. Buyer beware! We wasted a lot of money and I would strongly recommend looking elsewhere for help.
Marriage Recovery Center Reviews
My husband and I went to see Dr Hawkins in December of 2012 in hopes of repairing our marriage. We agreed to attend an intensive which left me feeling even more traumatized. My husband had struggled with sexual addiction for all of our 16 years of marriage. He was a classic sex addict (not a complicated case). After an inital seemingly professional consultation, we agreed to a 2.5 day intensive.
It was during our intensive the emotional abuse began. The Dr Hawkins who led the intensive presented a very different personality than the charming one we had previously encountered. He was much less professional and almost devoid of compassion/empathy. ( Which I found to be ironic as much of our time was spent doing an exercise where we were to show empathy to one another.)
He seemed to enjoy lecturing to us as opposed to counseling us. It was the "David Hawkins” show. At one point he even asked us if we wanted to sponsor his radio program on KCIS!! As the session wore on, he grew very impatient that I was not showing more empathy toward my unfaithful husband; and he became moody, withdrawn and threatened to terminate the session at one point. Thinking of my 6 children, I felt desperate and trapped, so I put on an act and modified my behavior to fit with what pleased him (it did nothing to foster healing with my husband).
I consoled myself that I would NEVER return to him. In short, Dr David Hawkins is a manipulative, narcissist who preys in desperate Christian couples. Avoid him at all costs. Happily, we stuck it out and sought the help of another counselor who was able to help us and we remain married.
The CORE is Destructive
My husband participated in the CORE program with Les as the facilitator. I believe his qualifications are as a Life Coach. Lee is not married and has no children, which i feel is pertinent. Throughout the program, the facilitator did nothing more than dismiss the pain of the partner and feed the entitlement of the abusive men in his group. Personally, my husband and I agree that the program spiraled his recovery downward. I strongly recommend you do not participate in any Marriage Recovery programs.
Beware if betrayal and trauma are present
Speaking from personal experience. If betrayal or trauma are a part of your story, do NOT look here for help. The C.O.R.E. led by Lee, did nothing but contribute to my husband's entitled attitude. Dr. Hawkins, despite his videos that lead one to believe he understands betrayal trauma...He absolutely does not. A specialist in narcissistic behavior was snowed by my covert narcissistic husband. Between the C.O.R.E. program and individual sessions with Dr. Hawkins, we spent thousands and almost lost our marriage. BEWARE!!!
Not congruent with videos
After suffering years of emotional, mental, physical, psychological abuse as well as an emotional affair, I learned that my husband also had a porn addiction. We watched all of the Marriage Recovery videos on YouTube and thought it was the correct place for us to go and receive help dealing with all of this. My husband signed up for the CORE program as well as individual counseling with Dr. Hawkins. To summarize. The information and guidance given by the CORE leader, was an influence for my husband to become very entitled and relapse. The conversations regularly seemed focused on the abused wife's reaction, rather than the abuse that caused the reaction. Often times the comments were very disrespectful. During the time my husband was in this program, two of the men ended up getting divorced. The interaction with the coach leads me to believe that HE is a narcissist. Dr. Hawkins, selling programs and books, seemingly aware of trauma and abuse became focused on my husband not having sex. Even though he was clearly informed that the lying and cheating had never stopped. This was a huge red flag and my husband stopped seeing him. To reiterate the title...Dr. Hawkins and his staff do not reflect the compassion and understanding exhibited in the videos. Buyer beware! We wasted a lot of money and I would strongly recommend looking elsewhere for help.