Relationships
fromPsychology Today
1 day agoThe #1 Thought Pattern Driving Divorce
Overthinking in relationships leads to contempt and disconnect, undermining communication and intimacy.
'These results do not support our hypothesis that parenthood is positively associated with hedonic wellbeing (levels of positive emotions) and life satisfaction,' the researchers, from the University of Nicosia in Cyprus, wrote.
Rapid engagement and marriage can sometimes mask underlying issues that may only surface later, especially when couples have not lived together prior to tying the knot.
I was just finished college, I managed to get pregnant over the summer, by accident. I was still in my early twenties, it took me a few months to realise that I was pregnant.
He had an alcohol addiction. He frequently lost his temper and shouted, usually only at me. He lied more and more, often about ridiculous things. I later found out he was committing fraud on a huge scale. When I confronted him, he cheerfully admitted it and said he had deliberately implicated not just me but also our sons, so I would not report him to the police if I ever discovered what he was doing.
It's been a theme in letters I've seen this year-adults complaining that children aren't processing the difficult things they go through in the way the adults want them to. 15 is a really hard age for a lot of kids, let alone for those who've seen two fathers exit their lives (to varying degrees). He's processing a ton of changes in his own life, possibly entering high school, and he shouldn't feel responsible for the feelings of his ex-step-grandparents.
Stopping disagreeing isn't a sign of peace, it points to emotional withdrawal, explains Simone Bose, a relationship therapist at Relate. It happens, says Bose, because couples are likely protecting themselves from feeling disappointed or from conflict itself, but are becoming emotionally numb. Clinical psychologist and Couples Therapy star Dr Orna Guralnik agrees, noting that some people don't argue because they've come to a state of acceptance of who each other are, but some don't argue because they've given up.
If you are in an unhealthy marriage that has been dysfunctional for years, it may be hard to accept the reality that your marriage and/or your spouse is not going to change. You've invested time and energy into this relationship and don't want to give up now. Maybe you keep thinking that once life settles down, or you get that new job, or the kids are more independent, then things will get better.
As Valentine's Day approaches, we are once again flooded with the usual suspects: roses, chocolates, sophisticated dinners and glossy ads featuring young heterosexual couples staring earnestly into each other's eyes. The problem isn't just that this version of romance is exclusionary though it is it's that it's profoundly out of step with how love is actually being lived, negotiated and reimagined in contemporary Australia.
My husband and I have what one could call a "traditional" marriage: He works, and I tend the home. Since we're child-free and I already finished college, I suppose you could call me a trophy wife, but firstly, I'm nonbinary, and secondly, that's the rub. On paper, not much: I read a lot, I tend to my hobbies, I attempt to bake, and I spend time with my husband.