Posts Tagged ‘trauma’
Newly Married and Already at Risk
Why do some marriages unravel within a decade? We have a personal stake in the question – three of our own children are newly married – but there’s a bigger reason too: research suggests that what eventually breaks a marriage often takes root in the first five years. Long before a marriage formally ends,…
Read MoreCan we change the subject, please?
One of the hardest conversations to have as a couple, is one about our sex life. Yet lovemaking is central to the Sacrament of Matrimony and is crucial to the flourishing of our relationship. There are couples in every one of our communities who have never once had an honest conversation about their sex life. Not because they don’t love each other.…
Read MoreEchoes from Childhood
Unpacking the hidden ways our earliest bonds influence love and trust in our adult relationships. One of the most powerful topics in the SmartLoving Engaged course addresses formation in our family of origin. The family is where we first encounter love and learn to relate with others. That’s why the Church calls the family “a…
Read MoreUnderstanding Compound Wounds
Who would have thought espresso cups could cause such drama? Byron had discarded the unused ‘free’ cups a year earlier, without Francine even noticing their absence. After a frantic search when a guest requested an espresso, she discovered their fate. Despite this information, she experienced a kind of suspende d reality – she…
Read MoreProgrammed for love or for trouble?
We were recently hosted overnight in the country home of friends. It was a beautiful experience in every way. Our hosts greeted us with warmth, housed us in a tastefully appointed bedroom and nourished us with a delightful meal. Their home was a beauty to behold; magnificent views overlooking the valley, landscaped gardens and an…
Read MoreThe Midlife Crisis Reinvented
Recently we were talking with a woman whose husband is in the grip of a midlife meltdown. Actually, she wasn’t the first; there have been a string of them over the years, all unique in their story line, but also sadly similar. The so called ‘midlife crisis’ has been stereotyped over the years with caricatures…
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