Often, if one person in the relationship cares and wants to make a change, that can be enough to make that change. In this podcast, I’ll explore the ways in which you can take care of yourself if you are in a difficult relationship.

Sometimes, despite our best efforts, we hit a “bump” in our long term relationship that becomes a mountain. Every day, more and more extremes show up, making things harder instead of easier.

Just like muscles, our relationships can become inflamed. When the relationship is inflamed, both parties are affected and often behave in ways that are out of character.

What does it look like when we are in reaction to extreme behaviors in your relationships? We might:

• Strive to make things right and keep people happy
• Change ourselves so as not to upset other people
• Do things we don’t really want to do

If that sounds like your relationship, you might feel lost and hopeless. How can you escape this tangle of emotions and negativity with minimum damage?

In this podcast, I referenced the following literature:

“A Review of the Anting Behavior of Passerine Birds,” K.E.L. Simons, in British Birds, Vol. L, October 1957, and “Avian Play,” Millicent S. Ficken, in The Auk, vol. 94. July 1977.

“Cortisol decreases and serotonin and dopamine increase following massage therapy,” Field T, Hernades-Reif M, Diego M, Schanberg S, Kuhn C. 2005 Oct Int J Neurosci.;115(10):1397-413.

Image Credit:

“Separation” by Flickr user Lin Mei is licensed under CC BY 2.0.