If you often feel ignored by your husband or wife, it might be because you married someone for whom curiosity feels wrong. Curiosity is one of the 24 character strengths studied in the Values in Action (VIA) study. This means a large panel of psychologists, historians, sociologists, philosophers, and other researchers found it to be valued across most cultures throughout recorded history around...
Here are some of the experts whose work influences my thinking and my behavior. John Gottman – He’s a well-regarded psychologist who researches what’s different about marriages that survive and marriages that end in divorce. Two big takeaways. First, the ratio of positive to negative interactions between spouses is 5:1 or greater in successful marriages. Interactions include our...
If your marriage is going downhill because you don’t feel needed, maybe you can stop it. Remember to Expect Love from your partner in marriage. In other words, don’t expect other things and thereby overlook the love you long for. For example, some folks profess their love with words like “I cannot live without you.” And they mean it. Or they believe they do: death by...
I love the TV show Scandal. In it, the President of the United States is having a longstanding and very steamy affair with the show’s main character, Olivia Pope, one of many scandals the title refers to. Last night, the President addressed a news conference called after his wife announced she and their child had moved out of the White House because he is having an affair. He opened with...
Would your marriage survive if you or your spouse had to deal with any of these? Firing Severe depression Blindness A home so small your visiting father can only get to the bathroom through your bedroom or by going outside Bulimia Painkiller addiction A rehab program you cannot leave that’s so bad your counselor commits suicide A bad hiking fall with a serious head injury for the one spouse...
