Be a love detective
Saturday, May 26, 2012 at 11:22AM
Ginger Holczer

Do you and your partner continually have the same argument?  Many couples come to therapy and report not only the same fight, but they fight the same way over and over again.  How do we put an end to this frustrating cycle?  Be a love detective!

Instead of going to your separate corners and putting on the boxing gloves, sit with each other and gather clues.  Ask your partner questions to help you understand what happened and what his/her thought process was. Here are some ideas for being a super love sleuth:

There are many questions that you can ask--just be sure the questions don't have a "blaming" or condescending tone, such as "what on earth were you thinking?!". Try and keep your voice calm and neutral, leaving the emotion out of it.  Ask questions with the intent of gathering information and not to use later as "ammunition".  Your partner will appreciate the effort you are making to understand the situation.  Sherlock Holmes, look out!

 

Article originally appeared on Ginger Holczer, PsyD (http://growyourpath.com/).
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