Healthy relationships require more than just love—they need respect, healthy boundaries, and mutual understanding. Sometimes, seemingly small behaviors, like interrupting, publicly correcting, or speaking over a partner, may signal early signs of disrespect. If left unaddressed, these behaviors can erode trust, breed resentment, and harm a relationship over time. Here’s why these actions matter and […]
Tag: building relationship
I recently came across a sign someone put in their yard that said, “KINDNESS ALWAYS”. At first I didn’t think much of it, but then I began pondering what the person who bought it might mean by it. Then I considered what it means to me to “be kind”. I suspect most people think “kindness […]
After providing marriage counseling in Grand Rapids for the past ten years, I’ve noticed a trend in things women find lacking in relationships. Below are four of the things that bug women I encounter during counseling. These are things their husbands or long term boyfriends tend to neglect. If you can get back to doing […]
When doing marriage counseling, one thing I do is ask the “miracle question”. This question helps you think about how you will first notice a miracle has happened, if the miracle is that your relationship is fixed overnight while you sleep. It helps you think about what positive changes you want in your relationship and […]
I use Solution Focused Marriage counseling when providing couples counseling. Many of the clients I see for marriage counseling have a similar problem. You started off well and your relationship was solid. But then you had kids and things seemed to change. You found yourselves getting distant from each other and not spending as much […]
One thing that often comes up in marriage counseling is the idea of having a successful argument where you give your spouse constructive criticism. When living together, problems will arise but how do you talk about it without your partner shutting down? In my experience providing marriage counseling to various couples, the shutting down often […]
How Solution Focused Counseling Works: When couples come to counseling to resolve marital issues, they often hope the therapist will be able to help the other person realize how wrong they have been and admit to it, then do things differently from now on. Unfortunately, it doesn’t really work that way. I’ve rarely observed someone who can […]