There is a subversive message for couples that are having a baby. This message makes it sound like women must feel amazingly awesome all the time during pregnancy. Men must be so filled with excitement about the new baby that they won’t even think about what they need anymore. The Expectation for Pregnant Parents is […]
No Free Beer for Parents
Being parents sometimes feels like running a marathon that never ends. It is wonderful, terrible, invigorating, exhausting, fulfilling, and draining all at the same time. The difference is that there is no finish line. There is no crowd cheering at the end. No band playing. No free food and beer. No one patting you on […]
Your Partner Isn’t Trying to Hurt You
Lisa and Jim (not real names) were in my therapy office falling into the same pattern again. Lisa was frustrated because she had been fixing a light in their living room. She asked Jim for help to reach something. He ended up taking over the whole project. She felt so hurt and angry about this. […]
Taking Care of Your Injured Spouse
I was playing basketball in the 35 and over men’s league. In the fourth game I tore my ACL and needed surgery on my knee. It was disappointing, but after processing the emotions of not being as young and vibrant as I once was, I started feeling like it wouldn’t be too big of a […]
4 Ways Social Media Makes you Log Off of your Relationships
Distracting You from Being with Your Partner I know personally how difficult it is for couples to plan a date night. Work schedules, kids, and stresses of life are all pulling us in a million different directions. Then, once every two weeks or so we get that precious 2 hours just to go out, get […]
4 Reasons Alone Time Will Help Your Relationships
It’s easy as couples to get completely consumed with the responsibilities of work, family, and relationships. The average American worker fails to use almost 5 paid vacation days per year the U.S. Travel Association found. Whaaaaaat? We don’t even feel like we have time to take vacation time from work that is rightfully ours. This […]
5 Steps to Feel More Control of Your Emotions
1. Be Aware The first step to feel more control of your emotions is to begin to be more aware of your own emotional experience. It is easy to simply blame other people for how angry we might feel, but that is not helpful to us in the long run. The only person I have […]
5 Ways to Manage Anxiety in Your Relationship
No matter how great a relationship is, we all have anxiety at times about our partner’s commitment and feelings about us. It is wired into our brains because for thousands of years not being in a family or tribe that took care of each other meant not surviving. The following are several reminders about what […]
6 Ways to Find More Time for Your Relationship
Take time for our relationship? What does that mean? With both of us working full time, preparing meals, cleaning up, and going through the bedtime routine with the kids, we’re lucky if we have time to chug a glass of wine and watch a 20 minute show on Netflix at the end of the night. […]
3 Money Problems Couples Need to Be Aware of
We all have emotions regarding money that evolved as we grew up and we bring those feelings into our relationships. Issues regarding money can be tricky to navigate. Money is one of the major things that cause arguments for couples. The following are some situations to try to avoid in order to maintain a happy, […]