We often hear that love is something that you feel, that you just "know" when you've met the "right" person. Jake and I offer a different perspective in this final episode of Better Wife Better Life! We talk about all things related to love a

Positive and Negative Sentiment Override

May 11th, 2020 8m 39s

How we experience our partner's behaviors and words can very much be influenced by whether we are looking for our partners to mess up or whether we are believing the best about them.

It's Not About the Toothpaste

May 4th, 2020 10m 1s

Conflict is rarely about the actual topic and often more about the underlying unmet needs of ourselves and our partners.

Resiliency

Apr 27th, 2020 10m 46s

All relationships go through some ups and downs. Learning the art of resiliency can help a couple come out even stronger during the tough times!

Adaptability

Apr 20th, 2020 8m 38s

Skills of adaptability and flexibility help couples grow closer together and throughout the entire relationship as situations change, people change and life happens!

Assertiveness and Speaking Up

Apr 13th, 2020 17m 16s

As we wind down the last few episodes of our podcast, Meredith continues building some of the building blocks for healthy relationships and communication. She will cover the role of assertiveness and learning how to speak up in today's episode

Boundaries

Apr 6th, 2020 9m 6s

Meredith talks briefly about the role of boundaries in dating or marriage relationship.

Unmet Expectations

Mar 30th, 2020 9m 21s

Can you guess the #1 reason for conflict in a relationship? It's not money, sex or communication...it's unmet expectations! Meredith provides examples and practical suggestions for navigating this source of conflict in relationships.

Intimacy

Mar 23rd, 2020 18m 2s

Meredith describes various types of intimacy in relationships and shares encouraging words of how to improve relationships that may be lacking in these areas.

Accepting Influence

Mar 16th, 2020 9m 58s

Meredith talks about the Gottman Method principle of Accepting Influence, especially in times of conflict. It's really important to put the relationship above the individual agendas of each partner. "Yield to win" is a way of doing this with

Publicizing Your Problems

Mar 9th, 2020 6m 12s

We all have our moments of complaining about our partners, but it seems more common to post a meme on social media that's a quick jab at something your partner does or doesn't do! This isn't helpful and can potentially harm the relationship.

Repair to the Rescue!

Mar 2nd, 2020 8m 27s

Conflict is normal, even in the healthiest of couples. But how we manage that conflict is critical. The masters are quick to engage in repair attempts once a conflict emerges.

Soften Your Startup

Feb 24th, 2020 6m 45s

Setting the tone for conflict in a positive way can absolutely make or break the interaction between a couple. Meredith provides background and practical tips for how to soften your start up when you have conflict with or a complaint about you

Are you a Pursuer or Distancer?

Feb 17th, 2020 12m 16s

Meredith explores a common issue in most relationships - one partner pursues and one partner distances from conflict.

Traveling With Your Partner

Feb 10th, 2020 7m 50s

Meredith shares about how relationships can be a wonderful opportunity for connection and also to practice healthy relationship skills like repair attempts and maintaining a 5:1 positive to negative ratio during conflict.

Attraction

Feb 2nd, 2020 11m 46s

This episode talks about the nuances of having a focus on superficial qualities in a relationship such as placing high importance on physical attraction, specifically related to physical qualities. Meredith talks about some of the pitfalls of

The Quality of Your Marriage is More Important Than the Size of Your Wedding Dress

Jan 27th, 2020 5m 22s

Meredith shares a quick word of encouragement to those who are engaged or about to be engaged to remember that focusing on the relationship is the most important part of engagement, not what size the wedding dress is or how tone arms look in we

Affair Proofing Your Marriage

Jan 13th, 2020 8m 51s

Affairs are often much deeper than we realize. Meredith gives practical tips for ways we can better understand and avoid this as well as hope for those who have experienced this in a relationship.

Long Distance Relationships - Strategies to Make it Work

Jan 6th, 2020 14m 54s

Meredith shares her own personal experience with making long distance relationship dynamic work with her husband. Strategies, Gottman tips and some encouragement are shared for those who are curious!

Relationship Rituals

Dec 30th, 2019 7m 18s

Meredith describes another strength of healthy relationships and that is one of establishing rituals and traditions. These help us build emotional connection with our partners.

Learning from the Masters - 5:1 Ratio

Dec 23rd, 2019 10m 43s

Learn how to stay engaged during conflict in positive ways that help to strengthen the relationship.

Contempt - Number One Way to Get a Divorce

Dec 16th, 2019 7m 46s

Contempt rounds out the last of the 4 Horsemen and we saved the worst for last! Just being plain ol' mean after losing respect and appreciation of your partner is one of the fastest ways to head to divorce court.

Silent Treatment and Its Relatives

Dec 9th, 2019 11m 5s

The emotional disconnect we experience during conflict or difficult conversations can be referred to as stonewalling. Silent treatment is an extreme form of stonewalling and Meredith goes on to describe other, more subtle, ways this 4 Horsemen

D-D-D Defense!

Dec 2nd, 2019 9m 51s

Defensiveness is another of the 4 Horsemen we've been talking about, so in the episode, Meredith shares more details about what defensiveness looks like and strategies we can use to reduce and eliminate this toxic style of communicating.

Holidays - Hide or Have Fun?

Nov 25th, 2019 17m 35s

In this episode, Meredith goes into more detail of all the different decisions and stressors that can make the holidays feel really tough on a relationship. With practical guidance for ongoing communication and some compromise strategies, we h