It's Mohandas K. Gandhi's* birthday today and he would have been 140. The great leader and freedom advocate was known for a lot of things; uncommon wisdom, unwavering resolve, uncompromising compassion and seemingly effortless leadership, but the relationship lesson that some people take from him is martyrdom. Read:  Love Lessons From Gandhi

Martyr is classically defined as "one who dies rather than renounce his/ her religious belief." And, generally, lots of people think that's a pretty good thing (the jury is out in my book). But, perhaps because of our love of pop psychology or its perverse use by … Read More

There is an understanding amongst the population, particularly rich, powerful men, that you can buy your way out of trouble. This has largely worked since mankind introduced the concept of money and baubles. In fact, I'm pretty sure jewelry was invented as an addendum to the formal verbal apology.

Case in point: Reuters reports that some ding-a-ling in the United Kingdom used the allure of the pricey and shiny for nearly three decades to make amends for repeatedly making lust to women other than his wife. Over the course of 26 years, Robert Charlton purchased roughly $400,000 worth of … Read More

When your spouse comes home from work and tells you his boss yelled at him in front of three colleagues, do you one-up him with a story of the client who reamed you out in a meeting—and later spilled his coffee on your shirt? When you tell your date you need to check out early tonight because you have a 6am conference call tomorrow, does he tell you that he's getting up at 5am to go to the gym? If this sounds familiar, you may be getting sucked into "misery poker."

In a new relationship-focused Wall Street Journal column called Read More

With the media's renewed interest in John Edwards' skeezy "groupie" philandering, and the vomit-inducing news about Cindy Crawford's husband, Rande Gerber, sexually harassing his cocktail servers, we've started analyzing cheating. Again. Yes, it's a favorite topic of ours.

However, rather than question the motives, we asked ourselves: do these men feel guilt? Or is it just a shoddy action explained away with rationalized logic and a raised fist to the sky, cursing the Gods for getting caught?

According to a recent study in Toronto, men and women have varying amounts of guilt … Read More

Hot, Hot, Hot! That's the only way to describe YourTango this past week. In case you had to get some water, here's a recap.

Feature: Diary Of A 23-Year-Old Mistress "He's just too charming, his presence too intense for me to resist," writer Emily Rozen writes. "And it doesn't help that I'm falling in love." Steamy!

Feature: How To Love Like A Tough, Southern ChickDolly Parton, Paula Deen, Margaret Mitchell and now you too can love like a Southern Chick!

Video: Facebook Manners And You If this is friendship, would you not be my friend? … Read More

I was in his office, rug burn forming on my knees as he slid me back and forth on top of him. I could see photos of his wife smiling and laughing on the bookshelf and his desk. I'd thought about escaping when I first saw them that evening. Instead, I stayed, feeling nauseous about the person I'd become. He's just too charming, his presence too intense for me to resist. To be honest, my willpower is nothing to brag about. And it doesn't help that I'm falling in love.

We met at my first business conference when I was 23 … Read More

If you've ever cheated on a partner, you know the double helix of guilt and exhilaration infidelity produces. In today's Times Online, Dr. Pam Spurr explains that the only way to heal a relationship after cheating is to communicate effectively with your parter.

"It's staggering how powerful illicit passion can be in convincing a person that their behavior is acceptable," says Spurr. Your guilty conscience will give you all the rationalization you need.  In fact, some people convince themselves they have a right to an affair. "If you keep telling yourself that you've been … Read More