Photo: TikTok
He made her mouth bleed.
By Ethan Cotler — Written on Feb 27, 2023
There are many different ways for couples to settle their arguments.
Some methods are deemed healthy, and some are not.
Taking a breather from a heated argument or seeking a therapist are safe options, however, one couple has resorted to more violent means of resolving their disputes.
A couple on TikTok decided to hit one another wearing boxing gloves when they are mad at each other.
A Maryland woman, Navy B, posted a video on the video-sharing app TikTok of her and her husband boxing.
"We agreed the next time we get mad at each other we [were] going [to] put the gloves on & fight!" she wrote in text over the video.
The husband, donning white gloves, stands with his back to the camera and Navy in front of him with red ones.
"You ready?" he asks her. She begins punching him and then throws a kick.
He stops, and she apologizes, clarifying that this would be a hands-only fight.
After a minute of them exchanging blows, she accidentally knocks her phone over.
They stop, and she goes to fix the camera position.
It's at this point that he realizes his partner is recording and after briefly hesitating, he decides to continue on.
Delivering one major blow, he hits her straight in the jaw, causing him to immediately cease the battle.
"We done," he says.
She seems to be upset since he got the last significant strike in at the end.
For most of the fight, he blocked her punches, and this punch was one of the few ones he landed on her.
She tries to continue, but he repeats that he is finished fighting, and when she picks up her phone to stop the video, it's clear to see why.
Blood stains her teeth from where he punched her.
"Look at my s--t," she says to the camera.
Navy pulls up her upper lip showing that the blood came from her medusa piercing.
It doesn't appear she's hurt besides that, and she isn't too upset about the minor injury.
"We still love each other," she captioned the video.
Some people are calling it healthy, saying this is a good outlet for their emotions.
"Very healthy for the relationship," one user wrote.
"I swear this helps the relationship," another person commented.
However, others expressed that there had to be a better, less violent means of settling their relationship disputes.
"So adult conversation was not on the list of conflict resolution options?" one person wrote. "All I see is a manifestation of trauma."
"I think taking it out would be more beneficial. She's clearly getting frustrated with every hit she takes and why would he put hands on a woman," another user added.
Many people commented that he only punched her a few times and not with full force, claiming he was 'holding back.'
People applauded him for doing so, saying that the fight was more of a way for Navy to get out her anger, not the other way around.
Following the viral video, Navy set up a GoFundMe for her and her husband to afford a therapist and take a "Baecation" to Jamaica.
Mary Kay Cocharo, a couples therapist, told YourTango in February 2023, "Fighting can be healthy (if it's done right)."
"I witness couples resolving their differences while maintaining full presence and commitment to understanding, validating and empathizing with each other," Cocharo said.
Of course, she is talking about fighting with words.
It's challenging to find a therapist that recommends boxing as a means of settling a relationship conflict — but to each their own so long as it's safe!
Ethan Cotler is a writer living in Boston. He writes on entertainment and news.