Dear Sasha,

I am accustomed to seeing people I know at the tubs and politely ignoring/acknowledging them, but nothing could prepare me for seeing my therapist in such a setting. It was awkward to say the least and made me question the etiquette around such an exchange, bathhouse and beyond. What do you do when you encounter a person in public with whom you have such an intimate yet structured relationship? How do you then continue this relationship comfortably and professionally?

Rub a Dub Doubt

Dear Sasha,

I am a young woman addicted to masturbation since late childhood.

I sometimes masturbate out of real horniness (good), but the strong urges I feel between my legs are always related to feelings of guilt and stress (very, very bad). It's quite different from actual horniness, and often I won't even think about sex but about plans for the future or whatever is stressing me.

There's no correlation between my real sex life and this. My main concerns are that a) it's very time-consuming when I'm most pressed for time, and b) I might get caught and freak someone out. (I'm so ashamed.)