I think the LW is experiencing a crisis elsewhere in his life and doesn't know how to express it except through his job. LW - what's happening at home? With your kids? With your wife? Are you wondering 'is this it?' 'Is this my life?' If the answer is a calm and confident nothing out of the ordinary, no, no ... then please, GUESS what might be the matter. Write a list of crazy suggestions for what might be the matter. Your socks don't match any more. You hate balding, you'd like to have sex once in a while ... anything. You'll feel a 'ka-ching' when you guess right. If none of this rings a bell - how about the past? Has anything terrible happened in the past few years that you had a surprisingly calm reaction to? Any crisis - health or emotional or otherwise? It's time to dig deep. It's time to find out what exactly is upsetting you. Because I think this is a cry for help. This is a cry for help from someone who has no vocabulary with which to ask for help.

And please - do it NOW so that you can get your job back into perspective. It's just something you do every day to keep you occupied, give a sense of a job well done at the day's end and give you a paycheck. Don't punish yourself any more for the feelings you feel like you're not meant to be having by losing

your job. That will just complicate things even further. You deserve attention. You deserve help. Start by giving it to yourself and then get yourself into therapy, or the gym, or whereever the cure might be found for whatever ails you. You are worth it.

I second MXC 100's advice. Make amends. NOT by telling your wife about past actions that can't be undone, but by undertaking meaningful activities now that will ensure you expiate your guilt and feel entitled to love and happiness now and in future. Voluntary activities. Loving your wife. Quitting complaining. Making the best of things.

You can do this. Millions upon billions have done it in the past. Unlike other posters here I don't feel that your crimes have been so great that they cannot be washed away. However, to do that you have to get off your arse and do things. Take action. Be brave. Move on.

Finally, what's with some of the disgusting adjectives about sex workers? They're people too, you know. Fulfilling a need. With problems and issues of their own. In fact I bet a few of the posters here have been or are sex workers right now. And others here have availed themselves of their services. As purveyors of the world's oldest profession they deserve respect just like anyone else. Sounds like some of the posters here have a few problems and issues of their own.

Why should he go? Why should he act ashamed to anyone except his family? And even then who knows what goes down in the privacy of people's homes ... probably he's a liar though. Probably. That's why guys go to sex workers, right? So they can have no strings sex on the side? It doesn't seem so terrible to me from a voters point of view. From a wife's point of view - shattering. But why is his career ending?

From a PR standpoint I would ahve advised him to get up there and say the following: I had a very relaxing therapeutic and wonderful hour with the talented Kristin. It was private and secret and now unfortunately it has come out into the public domain, hurting not just me but my family also. Right off the bat I want to apologise to my family, and most paritcularly my beautiful wife whom I admire and love more than anyone in the world. To the public i want to say - I was wrong. Sex work should be legal. Sex workers should be protected and taxed just like any other workers. That is all I have to say. I look forward to continuing to serve as your governor. Over and out.

In his wonderful book, not to be confused with the mediocre film of the book, The Witches of Eastwick, one of the witches is asked 'didn't having a baby feel miraculously creative?' 'It felt as creative as doing a shit,' replies the witch. 'And when you think about it, shit is pretty miraculous.'