Peter D. Ruffini, EdS, MA, LPC, LPCMH, ACS, EMDRPT-II

Even Capable Men Can Get Stuck. On the outside, things look fine. You’re taking care of what needs to get done. But underneath it, you’re dealing with another battle—unwanted pornography use or other sexual behaviors, anxiety, anger, pressure, disconnection in your relationship, or emotional shutdown—that keep coming back despite real effort to stop. You’ve tried handling it on your own. Pushing through works for a while, then the pattern returns. You’re worn down, concerned about where this leads, and what it could cost if nothing changes. This isn’t a lack of willpower or discipline. Something deeper is driving the cycle. When the focus stays only on stopping behavior or managing symptoms, the problem keeps coming back in a different form. Real change requires addressing what’s underneath. That’s where generic therapy often falls short for men—not because men don’t want help, but because surface-level coping lacks the structure, specialization, and depth required to interrupt the pattern and rebuild lasting change. My work is designed to go beyond symptom control and target the drivers that keep these struggles repeating, whether they show up as sexual behavior issues, anxiety, anger, or relational damage. I’m Pete Ruffini, founder of Proven Path Counseling. I’m an award-winning psychotherapist with over 15 years of experience, specializing in sex and pornography addiction, men’s mental health, trauma, anxiety, anger, and infidelity. My work is frequently sought out by men and other therapists for deeper clinical expertise and a more structured, results-oriented approach. I train and supervise clinicians, and contribute to media on pornography addiction, trauma, and men’s issues. Many of my clients are high-achieving adults, including professionals, executives, leaders, entrepreneurs, and public figures. My approach is trauma-informed and evidence-based, but it’s also practical and direct. We start by getting control—interrupting patterns, managing urges, and stabilizing behavior—so patterns don’t keep escalating. From there, we work on what’s actually driving the cycle: shame, emotional regulation problems, trauma, and long-standing belief systems, so change is real and actually lasts. Therapy with me is active, structured, and focused on results. This is individual work for men who want real change, not vague conversation or endless coping strategies. If you’re here, you’re not looking for another round of trying harder. You’re looking for what finally changes things.

Proven Path Counseling is a private-pay practice offering individual outpatient psychotherapy for adult men. Services are provided both in person and via telehealth for clients in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware. My practice focuses on high-impact, structured individual work with men and does not offer couples counseling. When clinically appropriate, limited partner involvement may occur to support accountability or recovery related to infidelity or sexual behavior issues.

I specialize in working with adult men struggling with pornography addiction, sex addiction, and compulsive sexual behavior, often alongside anxiety, anger, trauma, and relational fallout such as infidelity. Many of the men I work with are high-functioning professionals who have tried general counseling or self-directed strategies without lasting success. These issues are rarely about willpower alone. In my experience, pornography addiction and compulsive sexual behavior are often driven by trauma, emotional regulation difficulties, shame, attachment wounds, negative self-schema, and long-standing belief systems that surface under stress. When treatment focuses only on stopping behavior, the pattern tends to resurface in another form. My work is trauma-informed and evidence-based, using structured psychotherapy to stabilize behavior first and then address the deeper drivers that keep cycles repeating. This is focused, individual work for men who want real change, not surface-level coping or indefinite therapy.