Battle of the Titans
Mastering the Forces of Sex, Money, and Power in Relationships (Foreword by Robert Weiss, Ph.D., LCSW) is a compelling and constructive dive into modern-day relationship power dynamics. Framed in Greek mythology, personal narrative and therapeutic intervention, Battle of the Titans provides tools for couples to establish sexual and financial balance in relationships.
- Do you and your partner fight about sex and money?
- Are you sexually or financially disempowered?
- Do you undervalue yourself or overvalue your partner?
- Do you want to cultivate authentic power in your relationship?
If you answered ‘YES’ to any of these questions, then Battle of the Titans is your guide to self-empowerment!
No one wants to feel powerless, and yet we are destined to feel vulnerable and powerless particularly when we are in intimate relationships. The fact that power differentials exist in relationships is not in question; how couples learn to navigate them is. In unhealthy or abusive relationships sex and money are weapons of power for ultimate control and exploitation, and power struggles about sex and money can occur even in the healthiest of relationships—it’s the human condition.
So how do individuals and couples learn to balance power in their relationship? The answer is different for each relationship, but all healthy relationships are built on empowered partners.
Battle of the Titans provides essential tools and insights to:
- Successfully harness authentic power.
- Identify exploitation and engage healthy boundaries.
- Clarify the underlying attachment styles in relationships that contribute to over-valuation and under-valuation of self.
- Create healthy sexual and financial boundaries in relationship.
Reviews:
Kaplan shines a light on the underbelly that drives the desperate need for money, power, and control—coined Monetary Rage—and its impact on relationships. Recounting her journey with rigorous vulnerability, she skillfully braids together attachment theory, her origin story, and time on Wall Street in a tale that parallels the mythological Greeks jockeying for dominance. Battle of the Titans takes us into the inner world of the pathological narcissist with compassion and a healthy dose of reality, while empowering victims toward personal autonomy. An excellent read! — Alexandra Katehakis, Ph.D., author of Sex Addiction as Affect Dysregulation: A Neurobiologically Informed Holistic Treatment
Through the clarity of her own life lens, trauma therapist Deb Kaplan, former Wall Street financier, exposes the dark sides of power and control that blindside couples in their relationships. Battle of the Titans sheds light on the under- and over evaluation of self, narcissism, sex, money, vulnerabilities, and boundaries. A page-turner of provocative stories, action items, resources, and therapeutic evidence-based support. — Stan Tatkin, PsyD., author of We Do: Saying Yes to a Relationship of Depth, True Connection, and Enduring Love
Battle of the Titans lays out the path toward more stable and engaged intimacy in 21st century relationships. — Robert Weiss, Ph.D., LCSW, Chief Clinical Officer, Seeking Integrity Treatment Programs
Debra Kaplan has given her unique insights into the interaction of sex, money, and power in romantic relationships. Years after writing her first book on the subject, Kaplan has now provided new insights on the roles that psychopathy, narcissism and other personality disorders can play in relationships that have significant power struggles about sex and money. Battle of the Titans reflects the author’s interesting use of Greek myths and the powerful Greek gods to illustrate the features of the personalities she describes. This very engaging book provides effective tools for couples to establish sexual and financial balance in their relationships. I highly recommend it. — Jennifer P. Schneider, M.D., Ph.D., author of Back from Betrayal: Recovering from the Trauma of Infidelity and Sex, Lies, & Forgiveness: Couples Speak on Healing from Sex Addiction
In Battle of the Titans, Kaplan shares fascinating insights on the intersection of power, money, rage, exploitation and narcissistic abuse. Her message of empowerment is critical for anyone struggling with these issues in their relationships. This is a must read for those attempting to break free from financial or sexual exploitation. — Stefanie Carnes, Ph.D., author of Courageous Love: A Couples Guide to Conquering Betrayal
Debra L. Kaplan eloquently and skillfully sheds light on the dynamics between sex, money, and power in her latest masterpiece, Battle of the Titans. She provides excellent tools for couples seeking balance in these areas, and inspires those in abusive relationships to identify exploitive behavior and learn how to protect themselves from the most intimate dangers. — Candice Christiansen, M.Ed., LCMHC, CSAT-S, Founder of Namasté Center For Healing and The Global Prevention Project®
As a financial planner, I often see couples in conflict over money. This book explores and explains the role of money and power in relationships. — Rick Kahler, CFP®, CFT-I™, CeFT®, co-author of Conscious Finance and The Financial Wisdom of Ebenezer Scrooge
Battle of the Titans is an engaging narrative connecting the dots between sex, money, and power. Artfully interweaving myth, attachment and personality theories, historical events, case examples, and her own story, Kaplan illustrates how childhood emotional wounds, left unresolved, can form the roots of disrespectful and destructive power imbalances involving sex and money. For those feeling trapped in such relationships, Kaplan guides the reader to balance and well-being by way of self-empowerment. This information provides a new lens for my work as a financial therapist and as a human being. — Sarah Swantner, CFP®, NCC
Debra takes head-on two of the biggest taboos in our culture—Money and Sex. Leaven that mixture with power and you have a ground breaking book designed to improve any relationship. — Ted Klontz, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Practice, Financial Psychology Institute, Creighton University, Heider College of Business
