MARRIAGE AND COMMUNICATION

Congratulations on 10 years together! As you’ve probably already noticed, as time passes, things change in a marriage or love relationship. You change and your partner changes too. This isn’t always a bad thing!

In political chambers throughout the country, including in our national Capitol, political leaders give annual addresses to talk about how we are doing and what challenges we need to face in the year ahead.  Thinking about the highlights offered in the State of the Union tonight, there are similar categories that you could use to evaluate your union.  How would you rate your marriage, domes

Insurmountable marital problems that lead to divorce for one couple may in fact lead to a healthier, stronger relationship for another. The difference lays in the commitment of the pair to make their marriage work. It only takes one person for divorce, but it takes both partners to sustain a marriage.

We did it!! We did it!! When we planted our feet on the continent of Antarctica a few days ago, we became the first marriage researchers to interview successfully married couples on all seven continents of the world. And we want you to know that we are very proud of that accomplishment! As our loyal readers know, we have been engaged in our “labor of love” for over 30 years. We began our journey with this simple idea in mind – “Do great marriages around the world share common and pervasive characteristics.“

Too many people go through their lives without saying how they feel, what they want and what they really think. They do so to keep the peace, to please or gain approval or because they’re worried they’ll lose the one they love if they don’t remain silent. Have you lost your voice?

Cold and flu season is upon us. If you're feeling feverish, and you're accustomed to taking care of everyone else's needs before attending to your own, you might feel uncomfortable asking for help. So, here's a crash course in teaching your partner to step up to the plate!

Open mouth, insert foot. It's the verbal equivalent of walking through a restaurant with toilet peper on your shoe. We've all  experienced the mortification of poor verbal choices.  Sometimes, embarrassing stuff just happens.  Letting those blunders happen more often than not, though, is a problem that goes beyond stuff that sometimes happens.

Many couples soon after immersion into the daily grind begin to forget the next chapter, with or without their attention, is still being written.

”Open relationships” where both members of a couple are “allowed” to have sex with other people, remains a relatively fringe practice. But is it possible that this will be a new way of keeping relationships stronger and more lasting?   This question of monogamy, polyamory, fidelity as defined in terms of sexual exclusivity, this is the new frontier. The next line that will be questioned. We used to shun premarital sex, now it is practically par for the course course in the West.

At Santa's ripe old age, he's got almost as many tips on healthy relationships and communication as there are champagne corks popping on New Year's Eve. In the spirit of the holidays, here are his five sexiest tips for couples on love, communication and being naughty or nice.

Loneliness has become an increasing problem in our relationships today.  In fact, if you are living in a marriage without receiving love or being able to express heartfelt thoughts and feelings, you struggle to have a meaningful relationship.  Heartache and loneliness results from disappointment of not having your dreams fulfilled by the most important people in your life. Everyone yearns and desires in a relationship:  to be loved, accepted, respected, and appreciated by another person.

In my practice, I see many couples with concerns around keeping the romance alive in their marriage.  If I were to determine the single most detrimental thing one can do in damaging one’s relationship, it would be to not pay attention to one’s spouse.  I recently read a quote by Thich Nhat Hanh in which he says, ” When you love someone, the best thing you can offer is your presence.  How can you love if you are not there?

We like to think that the holiday season is a blissful time for all, but for many couples, it can create extra stress to an already rocky marriag

There’s no one reason couples get divorced, but unfortunately there are multiple effects. Aside from the psychological and emotional stress divorce can inflict on the couple, alone, it can also deliver a huge blow to children in the family. A new study by UK’s Economic and Social Research Council found that children of divorced parents were more likely to develop social and psychological problems as adults than those whose parents stayed married.

Having wedding jitters does not mean that the marriage is doomed or that it is time to call off the wedding. But all jitters mean that an intervention is needed. Something is making you anxious and you need to understand what it is.

Has something happened to cause a communication breakdown in your love relationship or marriage?