Marriage Counseling

Experiencing A Drought of Gift-Giving From Your Spouse?

Every couple is different. I tell my couples that 100% of my couples have been raised in different households. So of course injuries are inevitable. Different families have different traditions. Different gestures and words carry different meanings. Today, we’re talking about gift giving as a gesture, and specifically, a lack of gift giving.

Vulnerability Is Not Optional In Marriage

Vulnerability is a powerful and essential aspect of marriage. Vulnerability is often seen as a sign of weakness in our society, but in marriage, it is a source of strength that fosters intimacy, trust, and emotional connection. It is a key ingredient for a healthy and fulfilling marital relationship, and plays a crucial role in building a strong foundation for long-lasting, meaningful partnerships.

How Withdrawing Affects Relationships

Withdrawal is one of the most common and damaging patterns of behavior in romantic relationships. It occurs when one partner becomes emotionally or physically disengaged from the relationship and stops responding to the other partner's attempts to connect. This can be a result of many different factors, including stress, conflict, or emotional wounds from past relationships. However, regardless of the cause, withdrawal can have serious negative effects on a relationship.

Does Your Spouse Have A Disorganized Attachment Style?

How would you feel if you crave closeness but your partner tells you they need more space? This may sound ominous but it’s not necessarily a sign of problems. More likely, you have some attachment style differences to navigate. You see, there’s a whole lot more to relationships than love at first sight and happily ever after. No one writes fairy tales about attachment issues but they should. It would save a lot of us a whole lot of stress. 

How Common Is Infidelity?

How do you keep track of something that people will go to extremes to hide? Sure, there is research on infidelity. Esther Perel in her book “State of Affairs” states: Because there is no universally agreed-upon definition of what constitutes infidelity, estimates of its prevalence among American couples vary widely, ranging from 26 to 70 percent for women and from 33 to 75 percent for men.

How To Listen To Your Partner's Insecurities

They may need constant reassurance, be very controlling, or behave in a manner that is over-sensitive. Perhaps worst of all, you get a sense that they don’t trust you. You didn’t ask for it but the onus is mostly on you to bring this topic to the forefront. Obviously, such a conversation must happen face-to-face. But what else can you do to make the discussion productive and helpful? 

How To Talk To Your Spouse About Jealousy

Like all emotions, jealousy is normal and basically inevitable in small doses. If handled productively, jealousy can lead to positive outcomes for you and your partner. However, far more often, jealousy is rooted in past issues and can cause a wide range of issues. This is why it is so critical that couples talk openly and honestly about their feelings.

Stand Up To Your Partner With Love

That steady work can be summed up as “participation.” You may have heard about the importance of listening and not fixing things. But here’s another, equally difficult thing to do: stand up to your partner with love. This means that when things aren’t right for you, you say something. It means when you want to order Thai food and not pizza, you say it. It means when you feel there’s been unfairness and you need something different, you say it. While remembering that this is a person you love.