Dr. John Gottman’s research demonstrates the importance of not attacking or being defensive. This can prevent conflict from occurring in the first place. However, when...
15.012020September 9, 2019
08.012020September 9, 2019
Are We Incompatible?
By Dr. Richard ReinIn Couples Therapy, Marriage Counseling, Relationship CounselingTags Compatibility, Fighting
Eric & Meg got into a big fight over something small when Eric questioned whether he and Meg were compatible. They were having conflict with...
18.122019September 5, 2019
Create Connection
By Dr. Richard ReinIn Couples Therapy, Marriage Counseling, Relationship CounselingTags Connection, Friendship, Intimacy, Sharing
There are three primary ways couples connect with one another: sharing, doing, and being. Sharing can range from talking about one’s day, sharing stressful situations,...
11.122019September 5, 2019
Learning From a Debacle
By Dr. Richard ReinIn Couples Therapy, Marriage Counseling, Relationship CounselingTags Accusations, Defensiveness, Escalation
I hadn’t seen Tim and Maura for a while, but they talked about how much progress they were making. Then Tim brought up a time...
04.122019September 5, 2019
It Takes Two
By Dr. Richard ReinIn Couples Therapy, Marriage Counseling, Relationship CounselingTags Dissatisifactions, Feedback, Mean, Needs
Rob and Allison were high school sweethearts. Now in their early thirties, they were struggling for quite some time. Allison was spending a lot of...
27.112019September 5, 2019
Missed Opportunity
By Dr. Richard ReinIn Couples Therapy, Marriage Counseling, Relationship CounselingTags Communication, Couples Counseling, Interactions
I was talking with a colleague with whom I share a case (she sees the wife individually) and she talked about her approach to couples...
20.112019September 5, 2019
Being Present
By Dr. Richard ReinIn Couples Therapy, Marriage Counseling, Relationship CounselingTags Being Present, Equality, Fairness, Life Balance, Priorities
Karl has a demanding job. Even when he’s on vacation, work slips into the vacation. With two young children, his wife Ashley gets irritated when...
13.112019September 9, 2019
Healing Past Wrongs
By Dr. Richard ReinIn Couples Therapy, Marriage Counseling, Relationship CounselingTags Apologies, Forgiveness, Past Wrongs
In our last couples counseling session, Kim shared an incident from many years ago when she told her husband David that she had made him...
06.112019September 5, 2019
Why Are You Rhetorical?
By Dr. Richard ReinIn Couples Therapy, Marriage Counseling, Relationship CounselingTags Communication, Language
Jan just got back from a week-long conference and found Jeff in the garage. Jeff seemed aggravated and Jan said, “What’s the matter with you?”...
30.102019September 5, 2019
Thank You
The following was posted on the Gottman Institute’s blog Marriage Minute. Because the advice is subtle but profound, I wanted to share. Sorry for venting....