During the last three weeks we have been looking at how technology impacts our most precious relationships. In recent years, cells phones have begun to occupy greater and greater prominence in our lives. While it certainly puts the world at our fingertips, it also has contributed to incredible strain on our most significant relationships. We…
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Conflict seems unavoidable. And I guess, at some level, it is. Now I recognize this can look very different from one relationship to another. For some, there is conflict, often heated, nearly every day. For others, conflict may be mild and infrequent. But it still exists. I want to look at a couple of items…
DetailsAs a Marriage and Family Therapist, I have the opportunity to be involved in a fair amount of pre-marital counseling with couples. I am always excited to see couples make this a priority in their relationship steps because it tells me that they are being intentional about protecting the commitment that they are making to…
DetailsFor many, getting married was going to be the ultimate lifelong bliss that each and longed for. We were going to be different from all of those other couples who seemed to fight and struggle with problems. We had found the one who would make us happy and we would not experience the difficulties that…
DetailsAs you read that title, you are probably thinking, “Of course not.” And that echoes the sentiments of most of us. We hate suffering. We want comfort. We want to lay in a hammock, drink wine, nap, get a massage – anything that pampers ourselves. But suffer – no thanks; I am happy to skip…
Details“I am telling you, she gives me such a headache.” “The way that he treats me leaves me with a churning stomach.” “All we ever seem to do is fight – it makes me sick.” Have you ever felt this way? If so, you’re not alone. In a study that was reported at the American…
DetailsWhen is the last time you went to your partner and said – “I am broken, please fix me?” Or, “I have some flaws, would you please correct them for me?” As you read these questions, you probably are thinking that I’m nuts (I may be but that is a different discussion for another time). …
DetailsI was intrigued by a recent article in the OP/ED section of our newspaper, “Ten reasons to live without a smartphone.” As I read numerous studies regarding the ways in which smartphones impact relationships, this caught my attention. The author cites the high percentage of smartphone users in the 18 to 49 age bracket and…
DetailsYou may be wondering, “What in the world does my relationship have to do with a job promotion?” Well, I’m glad you asked. A five year research project out of Washington University in St. Louis made some very interesting, and relevant to relationships, discoveries. The project involved more than 4,500 people, examining the relationship between…
DetailsWhen my children were young, we used to drive to the Fresno airport, park, and spend an hour or two just watching planes take off and land. We were mesmerized by the fact that these huge pieces of machinery could get off the ground. Oh yes, there is a detailed scientific explanation as to how…
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