Here is a common pattern that occurs when problems arise in relationships:  get hurt, argue, resolve, apologize, move on.  If you are in a relationship where you seem to argue quite frequently, you are probably more familiar with this pattern than others.  If you are in a serious relationship you don’t want to break up everytime you have an argument, so you just let it all out, apologize, then make-up and move on.  But maybe there is something more that you can be doing to cut down on the frequency of these occurrences in your relationship…maybe an apology is not …read more

While reading about some of what is going on with the very public Gosselin divorce – Jon is allegedly taking money, Kate is allegedly hiding money – I’m reminded of how quickly things can blow up and out of control when a marriage ends.
My divorce wasn’t of interest to anyone not immediately involved with it. My family was happy. My husband and I were not. His family?  You’d have to ask them for their opinion – I no longer am in contact with any of them. Divorce is the most crazy-making thing I’ve ever survived.
This is my experience with divorce …read more

Sometimes you find yourself in a relationship that is thisclose to being perfect…but there is just one little thing that you want your partner to change about themselves.  The question of change is a BIG one in relationships.  Are you waiting for someone to change?  Are you staying together because you assume they will change?  Are you trying to change for someone else?
If you are in a relationship where you have asked someone to change something significant about their behavior or personality for you, then you know how difficult it is to move forward after this has occurred.  I’m not …read more

My long distance boyfriend and I hit a bit of a rough patch. It can happen when you are dating someone you see often, but when you are dating someone you rarely get to actually date, it can spring out of nowhere and it can be brutal.
As I’ve mentioned before, talking to someone on the phone, you miss a lot of those cues. Texting is even worse and no matter how many times I say, “I don’t want to talk about serious things while texting,” we do just that – we talk about serious things while texting. We argue with …read more

How many of you here have ever dealt with this? I’m sure if you have kids past two you’ve probably dealt with this a time or two. What about sibling rivalry? I don’t care how much you say they love one another, it is bound that they are going to
bicker and bicker they will. They are going to argue to the point you want to leave your own house and let them have at it, hey at least you won’t here the arguing anymore.
Tonight, that’s exactly what happened…well minus me walking out. But I did end up separating the two.
Here’s …read more

Did you know that showing stress or fighting in front of your kids can actually lower their immune system capabilities and cause physiological side effects? With the economy in a sad state of affairs, gas prices soaring toward that dreaded five dollar per gallon mark and so many home owners being foreclosed on, there is a lot of potential for marital tension and individual stress. It is common knowledge that stress about finances is the number one reason for divorce. Are you letting your own financial stress or other such issues, ruin marital bliss and cause anxiety? If so, do …read more