What it Really Means to be ‘Faithful’ in a Relationship

What it Really Means to be ‘Faithful’ in a Relationship

Infidelity can be seen as actual cheating. Unfaithfulness is that, but can be something else as well: wishing your partner were not your partner and wanting out, but not being able to leave. It’s becoming guarded in a way that separates you from your partner, as if...
Can You be in a Relationship but Still be Yourself?

Can You be in a Relationship but Still be Yourself?

Where do you end and where does your partner begin? Early in a relationship, you may not know or even care. Initially, both you and your partner present your best selves to each other. You want to share everything, do everything together and form commonalities, which...
Revisiting trauma in the wake of a tumultuous relationship

Revisiting trauma in the wake of a tumultuous relationship

When you’ve had a stormy relationship that’s ended, one of the most tormenting aspects of its aftermath is that you can think you’re ok, you ‘re feeling stable, but then you plunge right back into confusion, disgust, and fear all over again. Chances are the more...
What It Really Means to Be ‘Friends With Benefits’

What It Really Means to Be ‘Friends With Benefits’

Whether it’s online dating or out in the physical world, there are a lot of people looking for and trying to establish a friend with benefits arrangement, or “FWB”. The problem is, when an FWB hasn’t had time to develop organically, the label doesn’t fit and may add...
The 9 Stages of Grieving a Breakup No. 8: Anger

The 9 Stages of Grieving a Breakup No. 8: Anger

Here, I’m exploring the 9 Stages of Grieving a Breakup. I encourage you to start at the beginning of the series with the entry describing the first stage, Shock. In previous days, I have also written about the stages of  Denial, Desperate for Answers, External...