‘Married at First Sight’: Who Is Dr. Pia Holec?
When it comes to intimacy, some of the couples on Married at First Sight Season 16 could use some help. Sparks aren’t exactly flying for several of the Nashville pairs, particularly Gina and Clint and Jasmine and Airris. Enter Dr. Pia Holec. The MAFS expert was on hand during the show’s April 5 episode to give the couples some advice designed to help them get to know each other on a deeper level. But not everyone was receptive.
Dr. Pia Holec joined ‘Married at First Sight’ in season 15
Married at First Sight fans first met Holec during season 15. She joined the Lifetime reality series in its San Diego season following the departure of expert Dr. Viviana Coles, who spent several seasons advising MAFS couples on sex and intimacy issues.
Holec is back for the Nashville season. In the April 5 episode, she visited the four remaining couples to discuss on building stronger and deeper connections.
The ‘MAFS’ expert is a psychotherapist and sex therapist
Holec is a Chicago-based psychotherapist and sex therapist currently in private practice, according to her LinkedIn. She specializes in working with couples and individuals on a range of issues related to intimacy and sex, including relationship issues, family of origin concerns, and trauma. Holec trained at the Chicago School of Professional Psychology and Rush University Medical Center and has an undergraduate degree from the Univerity of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. You can follow her on Instagram at @sexdrpia.
The Nashville couples had mixed reactions to Dr. Pia’s visit
Holec might be on Married at First Sight to help the Nashville couples work through their issues, but not all of them were receptive to her advice.
For Nicole, who is married to Chris, the visit with Dr. Pia encouraged her to deal with some deeper issues around self-esteem and intimacy.
“This is a feeling I’m not used to. I thought we were going to meet with Dr. Pia and she was going to come spew some like, ‘Here’s how to make your sex life better.’ OK, great, thank you. I know what I’m doing. I have a very happy husband,” Nicole said in an interview segment. “But she really more so got to the root of why I feel the way I do about sex in general and what’s kind of block me from feeling better.”
Gina was less positive after her chat with the sex therapist. She and her husband Clint have struggled to build any intimacy in their marriage. After more than a month together, they’re still sleeping in separate bedrooms. The 36-year-old hairstylist was skeptical of Holec’s suggestion that they focus on touch and scent to build a stronger connection.
“I don’t know that curating our R&B playlist and lighting a candle is going to make us want to bang in the next three weeks,” she said afterward. “But we’ll definitely go for it.”
New episodes of Married at First Sight air Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET on Lifetime.
For more on the entertainment world and exclusive interviews, subscribe to Showbiz Cheat Sheet’s YouTube channel.
