Tag: monologue

Communication is key in relationships, and learning how to listen and feel heard is crucial when having discussions with your spouse.  Below are five tips that will help you assert your needs and communicate more effectively in order to create a healthy marriage.

1. Don’t reply. The hardest part of being a good listener is fighting the temptation to offer your opinions while your spouse is speaking. They are taking a courageous step to initiate a discussion about your relationship problems and you want to focus on being the listener and on your loved one’s message. If you are upset by what your partner says, reserve your response until they are finished speaking.

Relationships are like the proverbial canary in the mine shaft, in that they are the first to be affected by stress and tension. When we are upset, we typically don’t snap at our friends or co-workers, instead it all comes out towards our spouse. Although the holidays are intended to be a time of joy and celebration, the holidays also bring stress, which in turn gets dumped in our relationships.

The explanation for why the holidays create stress is very simple. Stress is another way of saying, "demand." When you place high demands on an engine or heavy loads on a piece of architecture you can also say you are placing stress on the engine or the building— the word is interchangeable.