Marriage

Safe Relationship Spaces

In the depths of our souls we all yearn for love and connection with others. That yearning reflects a basic, even biological, human need. Infants, for example, thrive physically only when they feel deeply loved and cherished. As adults, we experience wren

Love, Sex, and Relationships
Ask Barbara: The 100 Most Asked Questions About Love, Sex, and Relationships
by Barbara De Angelis, Ph.D.
How can I stop mothering my husband? How can a couple learn to trust love? Should you give a cheating partner another chance? Why can't my wife just have spontaneous sex sometimes? What signs should I look for in the beginning of a relationship to make

Cohabitation Nation - The Real Scoop About Living Together
by EqualityinMarriage.org
While the marriage rate is at it's lowest level in four decades, cohabitation between non-married partners has increased 1,150 percent in the last 40 years. A recent USA Today article attributes this trend to twenty and thirty-somethings being disillusion

Partnering: A New Kind of Relationship
Partnering: A New Kind of Relationship
by Drs. Hal and Sidra Stone
Partnering is the next step in the evolution of relationship. It is the vital, exciting, and challenging linkage of two energy systems so they can work together harmoniously to create something new and sacred. Partnering is cooperative and replaces th

The Not-So-Great Escape
The Divorce Remedy: The Proven 7-Step Program for Saving Your Marriage
by Michele Weiner Davis
People who are unhappy in their marriages often speak of feeling trapped. They yearn to be free from the tension, loneliness, constant arguments, or deafening silence but worry that divorce may not be the right decision.

Happy Marriages, Do They Exist? Part 2
The Good Marriage: How and Why Love Lasts
by Judith S. Wallerstein, Sandra Blakeslee
An acquaintance of mine-a highly regarded psychologist who has done extensive marriage counseling-called me when she became engaged. She said, I want to spend several hours with you, drawing on your experience.

Relax During the Engagement and Wedding
The Rules for Marriage: Time-tested Secrets for Making Your Marriage Work
by Sherrie Schneider, Ellen Fein
I deally, The Rules for Marriage begin before your wedding day. We believe once you get engaged, a wedding date should be set-no endless engagements. When a man proposes, it should be with a ring and a wedding date within one year, not longer, unless you

See More Clearly with the Pre-marital Inventory
by James Lucoff
It is important to understand that the pre-marital inventory is not a compatibility test. Its main purpose is to bring to the surface the conflicts that are in every relationship so the couple can address these before marriage.

How We Connect Emotionally
The Relationship Cure: A 5 Step Guide to Strengthening Your Marriage, Family, and Friendships
by John M. Gottman, Ph.D.
A work team at one of Seattle's floundering Internet companies has a problem that's common in many workplaces: They can't communicate with their boss. If you catch a few team members at a local tavern after hours, you're likely to hear an exchange

Part 1, Part 2
Don't You Dare Get Married Until You Read This! The Book of Questions for Couple
by Corey Donaldson
There is very little optimism left in this world when it comes to the institution of marriage. The U.S. Census Bureau reports the following statistics: Since 1970 there has been a decline of more than one-third in the annual number of marriages per one

There Goes My Baby
It's Her Wedding But I'll Cry If I Want To: A Survival Guide for the Mother of the Bride
by Leslie Milk
Oh, my God, she's engaged! You shouldn't really be shocked by the news. She may not live at home or even in her hometown, but you've seen the signs. First his name started cropping up in conversations. Then she was starting sentences with 'Tim thinks'

Are You an HSP? Temperament, Love, and Sensitivity
The Highly Sensitive Person in Love: Understanding and Managing Relationships When the World Overwhelms You
by Elaine N. Aron, Ph.D.
I fall in love so damn hard. I feel like an alien sometimes. Everyone else seems to be in a relationship. But what they call love just doesn't appeal to me. Investments, cars, sports, getting ahead at work-I don't say it, but I've zero interest in those

Marriage as a Spiritual Path
Listen with Your Heart : Seeking the Sacred in Romantic Love
by Eileen Flanagan
When marriage is seen as a spiritual path, it expands our ability to love, benefiting more than just two partners. It may serve as a nurturing environment for children. Or it may offer one or both partners the support needed to perform socially beneficial

Building Love in Your Relationship
by James Lucoff
We recently received the following question: Can this help people who were

Take Two? Should You Give Marriage A Second Shot?
by EqualityinMarriage.org
You may have gotten off the roller coaster ride of your first marriage a little pessimistic about hopping on any other attractions in the future. However, divorcees often find themselves in a new relationship, contemplating the pros and cons of riding dow

Happy Marriages, Do They Exist? Part 3
The Good Marriage: How and Why Love Lasts
by Judith S. Wallerstein, Sandra Blakeslee
Many therapists seem to think that the people in a faltering marriage are made of real flesh and blood, struggling with tangible problems, while those in a good marriage are something like Balinese shadow puppets.

2. Marriage and Morse Code
Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking
by Malcolm Gladwell
I watched the videotape of Bill and Sue with Amber Tabares, a graduate student in Gottman's lab who is a trained SPAFF coder. We sat in the same room that Bill and Sue used, watching their interaction on a monitor. The conversation began with Bill.

This is not the first time my husband has not stood up for me
by Ellen Kreidman, Ph.D
A pool salesman was at my house today. He was a high-pressure type of salesman. You know the type. They offer you a better deal if you are ready to sign on the dotted line today. I made mention of the fact that I did not appreciate his type of sales

Passion Quests
Sex Lives of Wives: Reigniting the Passion
by Holly H. Hollenbeck
Just what are married women in their thirties, forties, and fifties doing to keep the passion alive in their marriages? In her search to answer that question for herself, Holly Hollenbeck put together a "Passion Seekers" support group.

1. The Love Lab
Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking
by Malcolm Gladwell
How much do you think can be learned about Sue and Bill's marriage by watching that fifteen-minute videotape? Can we tell if their relationship is healthy or unhealthy? I suspect that most of us would say that Bill and Sue's dog talk doesn't tell us much.