What Your Relationship and Your Car Have in Common (Part 1)

Many of the males that I love and adore would rather endure a root canal without anesthesia than step foot inside of a therapist’s office. They don’t understand the science behind therapy and they’re not open to it. They’re not alone either. Research shows that women are often more comfortable with therapy than their male counterparts. This is due in large part to the gender message that men receive: Being strong means not needing other people and not needing to hire an expert for help. This discomfort with hiring an expert can become a major risk factor when a relationship gets stuck in a bad place. So we’re demystifying some very common relationship problems and couples counseling in a new 4-part series – What Your Relationship and Your Car Have in Common.  

Part 1: What Happened to that New Car Smell?      

Every long-term relationship progresses through a series of stages. In the first stage of Infatuation, the newness of something brand new and exciting is like driving a brand new car off of the lot. You believe you’ve found the perfect vehicle and spend lots of time obsessing over it. But by the time the relationship reaches the third stage a few years later, the new car smell is completely gone and many couples get stuck in a series of misunderstanding and arguments. This is the stage in which many couples benefit from marital therapy. Unfortunately, this is also the stage in which many partners misunderstand this normal phase of relationship development and assume they have a lemon on their hands. They may even be prompted to trade the relationship in for a different model. Couples that find their way through are able to make things run smoothly again and there are no more breakdowns alongside the road. The engine purrs consistently. And neither partner seems to mind that the miles on the odometer are getting up there. Click here to learn more about Flourish’s services for Couples. 

Stay tuned for Parts 2 through 4 of What Your Relationship and Your Car Have in Common.