Tag: Behavior
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Do You or Your Partner Struggle with Depression?
Note: If you are under a doctor’s care for depression, check with your doctor before making changes to your treatment program. I am not prescribing anything, nor suggesting what treatment would be best for you. When one partner struggles with depression, it can take a toll on both partners, and on the relationship itself. There…
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808 Topics for Couples to Talk About
808 Topics for Couples to Talk About A normal piece of homework I give couples is to have date night EVERY week, and they may not talk about kids or work. That’s where 808 Topics for Couples to Talk About comes in. The instructions are to take turns planning the date, and plan it as…
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For Couples: All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten
Couples would do well by each other by following these principles from Robert Fulghum’s book, All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten. 1. Share everything. Emotions, physically, intimacy, mentally, spiritually, thoughts, dreams, and things. 2. Play fair. Treat each other with justice and fairness. And play. But don’t play games with each…
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“We are Spiritually Unemployed” — What Will You Do About It?
“We are Spiritually Unemployed” When thinking about the concept of “we are spiritually unemployed”, I’m talking about the definition from the Oxford Dictionary: “of, relating to, or affecting the human spirit or soul as opposed to material or physical things.” Another definition of spirit is related to religion, and I’m not talking about that in…
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How are Exotic Animal Training and Learning in Marriage Related?
How are Exotic Animal Training and Learning in Marriage Related? I hear a lot of complaining about what a partner did or didn’t do. A lot of, “If you loved me, you would/wouldn’t,” and see many behaviors that lack appreciation and leave a partner feeling s/he will never be good enough. Reward and Praise (and…
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Afraid of Hurting My Partner’s Feelings
Afraid of Hurting Your Partner’s Feelings Do you avoid talking about certain topics because you are afraid of hurting your partner’s feelings? Many couples do. The proverbial pile under the rug gets so big that it’s a circuitous route around it. Unfortunately there are consequences well beyond hurt feelings when you leave things unaddressed in…
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Relationship Baggage or “Emo Crap”
Relationship Baggage or “Emo Crap” Whether or not you believe in the “California woo-woo thing,” as Elaine Taylor wrote in her story, A Karmic Pact Fulfilled: I Got the Love I Gave (posted on The Dallas Morning News), she describes so well why we need to work through our childhood issues in order to have…
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I Had No Idea How to Deal with Anger and Conflict
I Had No Idea How to Deal with Anger and Conflict Recently I was looking at one of my journals from the early 80s when I was 20 or 21 years old. I came across an entry about an interaction with my guy of that time. It reminded that I had no idea how to…
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Signs and Symptoms of Parallel Living
Signs and Symptoms of Parallel Living As I wrote recently in my best tip for marriage – which is to take care of it, I’ve been thinking of the signs and symptoms of parallel living that I see and hear about. Parallel living overall is the opposite of living as an intimate married couple. If…
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My Best Tip Continued
Here’s my best tip continued from the last post: When you get a great job, you do everything you can to be successful and work your way to promotions and raises. When you find a great partner, please do everything you can to be successful and make your way to deeper intimacy, caring, connection, love,…