Relationships
Whether you're dealing with family dynamics, seeking to strengthen your marriage, navigating the complexities of dating, or addressing issues like infidelity and divorce, our contributors shares tools and insights to foster healthy, meaningful connections with those around you, improving your overall quality of life. Enhance your interpersonal connections with advice on family, marriage, dating, and handling toxic relationships. Learn how to identify and manage narcissistic behavior, improve your parenting skills, build strong, intimate relationships and make your marriage bullet-proof.
Why “Just Leave” Is the Worst Advice You Can Give a Narcissistic Abuse Survivor
When someone you care about is trapped in a narcissistically abusive relationship, “get out” might seem like the obvious advice. This article explains why it’s not. The psychology of narcissistic abuse...
Regulating Your Nervous System to Reclaim Control from Narcissists and Manipulators
As a specialist in high-conflict negotiation and a monthly contributor to Brainz Magazine, I've dedicated my career to empowering victims of narcissistic abuse and manipulation. Whether you're...
Boundaries Don’t Work If You’re Still Afraid of Being Disliked
Setting boundaries isn’t about finding the right words, it’s about feeling safe enough to hold them. Many women know exactly what they want to say, yet freeze, soften, or overexplain when the moment...
How to Spot a Narcissist on the First Date
Have you ever left a first date feeling unsettled, even though nothing was obviously wrong? Many early interactions feel promising on the surface, yet something underneath feels off. Often, that quiet...
Is Borderline Personality Disorder a True Disorder and How Narcissistic Abuse Plays a Role
Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) has long been regarded as a complex mental health condition characterized by fear of abandonment, fragmented or negative self-image, emotional dysregulation, and...
Why it’s Dangerous to Label your Partner a Narcissist
Labeling your partner a narcissist can be an empowering step if it helps you leave a toxic, abusive, or codependent relationship. However, doing so can also keep you from discovering the very thing that...
The Hidden Narcissism Behind Spirituality, Poverty, and Global Inequalities
In an age where spirituality and self-development are widely embraced as paths to healing and meaning, a deeper and more uncomfortable question emerges, what happens when spirituality itself...
When Walking Away Is Survival – Understanding Family Estrangement
Family relationships are meant to provide safety, belonging, and unconditional support. Yet, for a growing number of adults, family ties become a source of emotional distress rather than comfort.
How Not to Match with a Surrogate or Gestational Carrier
Through our journey to fatherhood, my husband and I have become experts at matching, and unmatching, with surrogates. This was not the plan. We didn’t want to gain this expertise, but we...
Dying in Times of Biopower and the Politics of Grief
I still remember: What is under the stone? I asked. Back then, as a child. At the cemetery. A body, they said. And why the candles? For the dead. Oh, I see. I nodded, buried my hands in my jacket pockets...
When Is It Time to Stop Blaming Others?
Life can be challenging at times. We may not be accepted into the college we aimed for, the person we wanted to be with isn’t interested, and money may be a struggle. Life, relationships, career, the...
Family Life – The Beautiful, Chaotic, Hilarious Journey You’re Totally Ready For
A motivational inspiration article for young adults, with jokes, truth, and that little spark you didn’t know you needed.
The Adult Child at Christmas – Navigating Estrangement, Grief, and the Changing Meaning of Home
Christmas can be a complicated season for the adult child, especially when family relationships have shifted, broken, or been forever changed. While there is often an expectation of togetherness, many...
The Sparkle in Their Eyes – Finding Gratitude in the Small Moments of Motherhood
There’s a feeling I wish I could bottle, that glitter-like rush in your chest when you look at your kids and see pure excitement in their eyes, curiosity bursting at the seams, and that look that says...
But Won’t Couples Therapy Just Make Things Worse?
If you have ever heard this or even said this yourself, you are definitely not alone. I often get asked: “Doesn’t couples therapy just bring up problems and cause more conflict?” And here’s the honest...
Why Using Divorce as a Threat Destroys Relationships
The moment divorce is used as a threat, the relationship crosses a line it cannot uncross. Even if the words are taken back, even if the couple stays together, something fundamentally shifts.
The Invisible Divorce – Losing Each Other Without Leaving
Disconnection in a relationship rarely announces itself loudly. There isn’t always a big fight, a betrayal, or a clear moment where everything changes. More often, couples begin to lose each...
When Love Meets Money – Why Relationships Break Down and How to Build Financial Harmony
Money is one of the most emotionally charged forces in a relationship. It shapes how partners give, receive, plan, dream, and even how they fight. While couples often break up "because of money,"...
Why Feeling Like a Fraud as a Marriage Counsellor Actually Makes Me Better at My Work
There’s a quiet expectation that lives beneath the title “marriage counsellor.” It whispers things like, you should have the perfect marriage, you should know exactly what to do, you should be the...
When Feelings Have Feelings – How Meta-Emotions Shape Your Relationship
Emotions are super messy sometimes. We have all felt them, but the feelings we have about our feelings, that is where things get really interesting. Introducing meta emotions, the hidden layer that...
The 15 Steps to Get Married
The key to being ready for a real marriage is emotional maturity. It takes a list of joyful and harsh experiences to be emotionally strong enough to thrive and make a marriage last. Let’s explore them together.
Is He the One? When Relationship OCD Turns Doubt Into Obsession
Relationship OCD (ROCD) is an overwhelming condition that causes individuals to doubt their romantic relationships constantly. Unlike the occasional doubts that most people experience, ROCD leads to...
Healing From Betrayal – Rebuilding Trust and Restoring Safety is Possible but It Won’t Come Easy
If you have been betrayed by the person you love most, you already know this is not just heartbreak, it is a full-body, full-life rupture. This is the kind of experience that shakes your sense of safety...
How Couples Can Truly Recover from Infidelity Through a Trauma-Informed Lens
Infidelity is one of the most devastating experiences a couple can endure. It shakes the foundation of safety, honesty, and emotional intimacy that a relationship is built upon. As a trauma-informed...
How to Stop Trying to Please Everyone and Reclaim Your Authentic Voice Midlife
Are you nice at the expense of holding back your truth? Does that niceness strangle you and sit heavy on your chest? And when you do say...
Breaking Free from the Chains of Perception and Trauma
Who and what should we believe? On one side, there's a carefully worded story. Filled with salacious details and tidbits...
What's The Motivation Behind Infidelity (And Why Is It Important To Know)?
A whopping 45% of married men have been involved in emotional infidelity, while 35% of women have participated in an emotional affair...
When Do Emotional Affairs Become Full-Blown Affairs? The 8 Stages Explained
Ever heard of an emotional affair? They're dangerous! The definition of an emotional affair is a deep, emotional, non-physical
How Online Gaming Companies Are Destroying Our Children's Lives?
There’s a word we carry quietly, locked behind the armour we build to survive, lonely. For men, especially those stumbling through the long shadow of childhood trauma, loneliness is not just a passing mood. It’s an epidemic, gnawing at self-worth, sabotaging connection, and deepening wounds that never seem to heal.
How to Support Your Anxious Child and What Really Helps
When your child is anxious, every instinct tells you to fix it, soothe it, or make it disappear. But what if real, lasting change doesn’t come from eliminating anxiety, but from helping your child learn they can...
Parent Mental Health Day – How the Wellbeing of Parents Shapes the Future
Every year on 30 January, Parent Mental Health Day invites us to pause and reflect on a truth that is both simple and profound, when parents are well, families flourish. Founded by the UK-based youth...
Understanding Matresence – The Process of Becoming a Mother
Motherhood is one of the most profound transformations a woman can experience. Beyond the visible changes to daily life, it initiates a deep internal shift. One that reshapes identity, priorities, and...
How to Become an Intuitive Parent
In today’s world, we have access to so much information about parenting, as well as everything else. It’s wonderful and, at times, overwhelming. Do you ever wish you didn’t have so many conflicting...
A Mother's Journey – Celebrating Strength, Love, and Triumph
Liz Lindenbauer is a talented writer and producer, and above all, a devoted mother to Eva. With pride and warmth, she introduces her remarkable daughter, whose strength, spirit and individuality...
Raising a Pre-Teen or Teen in this Crazy World?
What if the answers to raising an 11-year-old girl or a 16-year-old boy were at your fingertips? Can you imagine how your new year could look entirely different from your current one? Try to picture a...
Stop Marrying Your Trauma and the Identity Divorce You Didn't Know You Needed
In the world of personal development and psychology, we often talk about finding ourselves. But what happens when what you find is a label that weighs more than the wound itself? To move toward...
The Hidden Psychology of Divorce
Divorce is often considered a legal process, yet for the individuals involved it feels highly emotional, visceral. When your life is unravelling, everyone tells you to ‘make good decisions.’
The Overlooked Cost of Personal Transitions Driven Professionals Rarely Address
Driven professionals understand structure. When organizations experience transition, leaders know that stability does not return on its own. Planning, strategy, and intentional recalibration are required...
Mediating Divorce in the New Year – Why January Is an Ideal Time for a More Peaceful Approach
The start of a new year often brings a renewed focus on clarity, intention, and long-term wellbeing. For many couples, it is also the moment when difficult but necessary conversations about separation...
Navigating Divorce in the New Year – Why January Marks a Turning Point for Many Families
The new year has long been associated with fresh starts, personal reflection, and major life decisions. In family law, January consistently emerges as one of the busiest months for divorce...
Rushing Into a New Relationship After Divorce or Heartbreak? Here’s the Truth You’re Missing
When a marriage, long-term partnership, or deeply invested relationship ends, whether through divorce, separation, or a painful breakup, the world expects you to “move on.” But the human psyche doesn’t...
The No-Man’s-Land Week – 5 Ways to Prepare for Telling Your Partner You Want a Divorce After New Year
Christmas has ended. The outdoor lights continue to shine but your inner self remains completely still. The seven days between Christmas and New Year create a strange period, it’s almost like life and...
Why Your Intuition Is the Only Dating Advice You'll Ever Need
Ah, February 14th just came and went. For many in the Western hemisphere, it was a day filled with the usual relentless bombardment of pink hearts, romantic comedies, and societal pressure to "find your...
12 Real-World Reset Steps After a Breakup for Autistic and Neurodivergent Adults
Breakups hit different when you’re autistic, ADHD, or both. It’s not just “sadness.” It’s nervous system whiplash, loss of routine, dopamine withdrawal, and your brain running a 24/7 replay with zero...
The Rage-Room Date and Why Valentine’s 2026 Is Too Angry for Roses
Valentine’s Day has long been a masterclass in social choreography. We know the script by heart: the frantic last-minute flower delivery, the overpriced "Valentine’s Special" set menu, and the quiet...
Why Most Couples Can’t Scale Wealth Together and How Sacred Union Changes Everything
Wealth has a way of accelerating whatever already exists inside a partnership. As revenue grows, decisions carry more weight, timing becomes unforgiving, and misalignment stops hiding behind...
Why Do We Find Stability Boring in Relationships? The Truth About Passion, Intimacy, & Healthy Love
Why does the very thing we crave in love, safety, trust, and stability, so often leave us feeling restless or even bored? Many people confuse calm with dullness and passion with chaos, leading them...
When Love Becomes Currency – Why Broken Hearts Confuse Desire for Connection
As a little girl, all I ever wanted was to shoot love out of my chest like a Care Bear, for anyone who needed it. Love felt instinctual to me. Natural. Something meant to be shared freely. What I learned...
A Valentine’s Gift That Lasts Longer Than the Day
Valentine’s Day is a celebration of love, connection, and meaningful gestures. While traditional gifts like chocolates and flowers are always appreciated, they’re often short lived. If you want to give your...
The Freedom Structure of the Intimate Relationship
The Freedom Structure in intimate relationships provides a framework grounded in specific principles to help couples balance autonomy and togetherness, aiming for lasting success. While love, care...
Understanding the Language of Love Beyond Words
Small choices, repeated daily, are love’s true language. Take a moment to notice how love communicates in your life.
Why Love Feels Unsafe Even When You Want It
There’s a very specific kind of woman who struggles with love, and she’s usually the one who looks the most put-together. She’s smart. She’s emotionally aware. She knows how to take care of herself.
Why Talking About Sex Can Kill Desire and What to Do Instead
For many of us, “good communication” has been framed as the gold standard of intimacy. We’re told that if we could just talk more openly about sex, our needs, fantasies, and frustrations, then desire...
From the Garden to the Heart – Our Desires and the Cost of Avoiding Truth
There’s a saying that a broken clock is right twice a day, and I believe the same holds true for people. During one of the more meaningful conversations with someone I was once close with, a thought...
From the Inside – A Jiu Jitsu Coach and Psychotherapist on Power Dynamics in Jiu Jitsu Relationships
Hookups in jiu jitsu gyms are not necessarily unethical. However, when intimate relationships brew within power-imbalanced training environments, they can mirror familiar dynamics of power, control...
5 Tantric Practices That Turn Sex Into a Nervous-System Regulating Experience
Sex is often considered a way to unwind and reconnect, but for many, it can unintentionally trigger stress or anxiety. Learn how to turn intimacy into a calming, nourishing experience by incorporating...
Why Men Shut Down After Betrayal And What Real Healing Actually Looks Like
When men discover a partner’s betrayal, the response often looks quiet on the outside. Inside, the man may be spiraling and in deep pain. Often he will hide this pain by getting lost in his work...
When Disbelief Becomes Trauma and Impacts the Nervous System
There is a particular kind of damage that happens when you are not believed. In my experience, it is often more destabilizing than the original event itself.
What No One Warns You About After Leaving a Toxic Partner, and 5 Ways to Get Through It
Leaving a toxic partner is rarely a clean break. While you might expect emotional freedom, relief, and clarity, the reality can feel quite different. For some, walking away triggers a spiral of...
Why People Turn Their Backs on Addicts – Understanding the Psychology of Abandonment
I recently spent some time trying to support someone who, as the result of severe trauma, became addicted to alcohol. This period of time has been probably the second most difficult time in my life...
How To Spot A Leading Edge Deviant in Your Generation
Imagine being drawn to listening to a motivational speaker in a social media video, podcast, or audiobook. You fell in love with them because they inspire you with their positive insight surrounding...
The Six-Letter Word That Saves Relationships – Repair
When it comes to relationships, we often highlight love, communication, and trust. But there’s one six-letter word that doesn’t get nearly enough attention for how powerful it is. It actually has the...
Why Feeling Heard Matters More Than Being Right in Relationships
Many relationship conflicts aren’t really about the topic being argued. They’re about the emotional experience underneath it. Feeling dismissed, misunderstood, or unseen often hurts more than the disagreement itself.
Why Curiosity Matters More Than We Realize in Creating a Happier, Healthier Relationship
In this thoughtful exploration of the human-animal bond, holistic wellness practitioner and inter-species relationship guide Arlana Tanner-Sibelle invites readers to reconsider one of the most overlooked...
3 Ways to Have Healthier, More Fulfilling Relationships
As a collective, we have come to normalize stress in our lives. Life is so full of constant stimulation and distraction, pulling us in so many different directions, that we have forgotten about being.
Love Is a Silent Language, Energy Is the Language of Love
Love is more than emotion. It is an energy that speaks quietly through the body and the spaces between us. This article explores the invisible current that shapes how we connect, choose partners, and...
How Christmas Unmasks Your Relationship and What to Do When It Does
When the fairy lights glow and the carols swell, it’s easy to believe that romance rules the season. But beneath the sparkle and satin lies a far more telling truth: this is the time when relationships...
Women Are Conditioned to Explain, Fix, and Please, but It's Time We Course Correct
For generations, women have been conditioned to explain themselves, fix emotional problems, and please others at the expense of their own well-being. These patterns, rooted in survival, culture, and...
How to Show Up for the New Moms in Your Life
It can be isolating to be a new parent. When you’re in it, being wrapped up in newborn life often feels like the world has moved on without you, leaving you in a weird limbo between baby bliss...
Why You Struggle to Say No and What You Were Taught Instead
You know the pattern. You say yes when you mean no. You ignore the discomfort in your chest. You rehearse saying no in your head, but smile and go along with it anyway. Then the guilt hits. The shame.
