Oh it can get downright painful and destructive. Combat between lovers. We Imagoans call it The Power Struggle. It typically shows up between 6 months and 2 years after you get together. It is reactive fighting. Lizard Brain stuff. That part of our brain, in case you didn’t link over to Wikipedia, is located at the base of the brain stem, and is only concerned with “fight or flight” needs. It’s the bat phone for adrenaline. It senses real or *perceived* danger, and like some kind emotional flypaper for our childhood pain, snags anything that comes along that will suffice for an outburst. A temper tantrum. Nice. That’s attractive, right?

You know, I’m standing right here, so yelling is unnecessary and ineffective. I really can’t hear what your saying; I can only hear you yelling. If you know phrases like that, then you’re familiar with the lizard brain.

Now don’t get me wrong; there are times when that part of your brain has saved your life. More than once, I’d bet. It is responsible for all kinds of heroic and lifesaving acts. Or should I should I say REACTS? That’s it’s job. Kind of like a little almond sized 911 center in your brain. So it serves an important function. But negotiating emotional needs in a realationship is no place for temper-flaring-adrenaline rushes.

Nor should you ignore your needs in order to prevent a fight. That will likely just serve as bicep curls for resentment. And loss of self over time. Don’t try it; it won’t work.

Oddly, this power struggle is (now stay with me) growth TRYING to happen. Yep, you heard it here. Where two people see everything exactly the same way all the time, one of them is unnecessary! Conflict is inevitable in relationship. But it is not a bad thing, believe it or not, if both people are willing to engage a different part of their brain to communicate. Look, you don’t want to be married to a two-year-old throwing a tantrum, right? Neither does your partner.

That is why we use the Imago Dialogue. For one thing, yelling is contraindicated because it hurts badly and doesn’t help at all. But beyond that, the dialogue allows for the effective transfer of accurate information from one partner to the other. We call this communication, and scientists have discovered it is a handy tool for actually being heard. It also engages the cerebral cortex, which is where reason happens, among other higher human functions.

If you’re tired of the fighting, check out the Getting the Love You Want workshop that will teach you the tools you need to have a conscious relationship!

Five warning signs of a conscious relationship:

1. you feel safely and intimately connected to your partner.
2. you get to be yourself.
3. you communicate bi-directionally.
4. you have fun, joy, meaningful experiences together.
5. you are grateful to and for each other.

The day began with the sound of birds, as it often does here
in the South. It seems I have slowly
settled on a quiet affinity for birds, both in the visual sense as well as
their songs. I derive much joy from feeding
and watching them, but mostly it’s their singing that resonates in my soul,
especially at daybreak and twilight.

I woke up happy in my little tent, watching the sunrise over
the South Carolina Marsh.   Happy for the
glorious sky. Happy for the day’s imminent potential fun
factor. Happy to be in this gorgeous
place with my wonderful friend Garri, and happy for the circumstances that led
me to this amazing life where I do often wake up with joy.

Our plan for the day was to have a big breakfast, then go
kayaking at high tide, just around the corner from her little slice of heaven
on St. Helena Island.

With my kayak already loaded on top of my old SUV, we set
about to untangle hers from the briars and brambles which had begun to claim it. A kayak’s job, when it’s not in the water, is
to collect said brambles, in addition to leaves, pine needles and cobwebs inside
the cockpit. This boat had done it’s
secondary job well and thus needed a bath before we put in. Nothing worse than having to deal with
spiders – or whatever — when you’re already in the water and perched
precariously in a tip-prone vessel! So
Garri grabbed the hose and began cleaning. A few seconds later, she was alarmed.   That pile of leaves, pine needles, etc.
behind the seat was actually a bird’s nest, with several very young, live baby
birds. Mama bird had built a nest and laid her eggs behind the seat of the kayak! And we had just accidently intruded on their fragile
beginning of life. They couldn’t have
been more than a few days young, if that; measuring only a couple of inches in length
and undeveloped feather-wise. They were
sprawled around the ground from having been hosed out of the kayak. We were all stunned.

We quickly scooped up and reassembled the nest, then gently
returned three tiny creatures to it. We
called everyone we knew who might know how to optimize their chance survival. There would be plenty of time for guilt
later. For now, we were worried for
their survival. The consensus was to place
the nest in a box near where the kayak had sheltered the babies.

And that is exactly what we did. Filled with an astonishing sense of urgency,
and a mind full of prayers, we worked together to re-create their nest, and
committed ourselves to faith that Mama Bird would return.

In the process we
also found an unopened egg, which we also returned to the makeshift womb. Later, this egg would help identify their
species.

Now, we had to muster up the discipline to walk away, resume
our plan, and leave them in the very capable care of their mother, but it was
hard to detach. We loaded the kayak and
headed out for a paddle, which was lovely, by the way, and we can heartily
recommend a paddle off Butch’s Landing, Highway US 21, St. Helena Island, on
Ward’s Creek.

Following the hot paddle, we treated ourselves to icy cold beers
and oysters at Johnson Creek Tavern, electing the outdoor seating under a
canopy, facing the marsh, with the beach visible in the distance.   Again, we were awed to witness a mother
Osprey tending to her nest atop a utility pole right before our very eyes. We watched her fly back and forth, carrying
what appeared to be a Spanish moss covered branch back to the nest.

Eventually, we made our way back to camp, and inspection of
the nest revealed the joyful discovery that Mama bird was indeed still in
charge of her babies. How did we know
this? Because in the process of giving
them little sips of water, (a holy moment for me) I discovered now there were
not three, but four peepers in the

nest! Grateful hearts celebrated with tearful hugs, and we may have
even danced a little jig, because we were understandably, deliriously
happy.

We admonished ourselves again to let go and detach, let nature
take her course, and go about our little camping routines. But I will tell you that is much harder than
it sounds. There was no denying I was
captivated by their little lives, and head over heels in love with the entire
family. I don’t think I have ever in my
life had the remarkable experience of feeding a baby bird, even if it was just
a drop of water in each of their tiny mouths.
Besides, for me it was justification for new obsession. Mama Bird had to have watched us return those
birds back in their nest, feed them, and love them. Surely she understood I am no threat, so why
would she mind if I check in on them from time to time?

Still, somewhere in my brain, I knew I had to let go.

As it happens, the outdoor shower (another of my highly
recommended experiences) is within sight of the nest, so the next morning as I
was showering, I put my glasses on to have a glance and saw something that
caused extreme joy: I watched Mama Bird
feed them!  She was perched on the side
of the box, and feeding each of their little open beaks. I couldn’t wait to share the news, and we
celebrated again. We were redeemed.

In my profession, there is a saying: “forgiveness is a gift you give
yourself”.   Yet in this case, I knew
that this forgiveness was a gift from Nature.
Our job was to receive it. Our
hearts had been heavy and we had worried that we had wrecked their nest or
worse, killed these compelling, innocent little creatures. Have you ever been catapulted from the depths
of guilt to the joy and release of forgiveness of the one you hurt? Then you know the instant and soulful
transformation of which I speak. Yes,
forgiveness is a gift that defies description.

It is also an existential equation.

I had an epiphany. I have
been hurt, and I have hurt others in my life.
The pain and guilt on both sides have caused great sadness, remorse and
suffering. And today it all came home to
me:

Suffering is the teacher.

Grace is the lesson.

Forgiveness is the
gift.

And nature, thankfully, is one amazing classroom.

Forgiving ourselves and forgiving others is, indeed, a gift. Though it is not always easy, the yield is
profoundly meaningful. We are not meant
to suffer, except to learn. Punishment
serves no purpose; it’s the redemption we must seek, first within
ourselves. When forgiveness flows,
therein lies the gift to all concerned.

The birds, as the egg helped determine, are Carolina
Chickadees, small but powerful both in song, and in their capacity for changing
hearts of human beings.

Dedicated to my dear friend,
Garrison, who shares and inspires in me a deep appreciation of the abundant
Carolina Coast.

Typically, couples do not seek relationship counseling when things are going well. Often they wait until the relationship is in crisis, completely falling apart before they seek help.

The relationship may be in crisis because of some external threat or betrayal of trust, such as an affair. Or maybe the fighting has just become too frequent or painful. Perhaps the relationship has just turned cold and distant. Each of these constitutes a painful existence, and this is usually when people search for a couple’s therapist.

Relationships often follow patterns and couples often feel that they are having the same argument or negative experience over and over. It’s exhausting and unproductive. Options are to keep fighting, keep distancing, leave and start over with someone else, or get help. (Just FYI about starting over, and speaking of patterns: if you leave and start over without awareness of what is really going on under the surface, you will likely end up in the same situation.)

So the best way to save a relationship in trouble is this: do a combination of Imago Relationship Therapy and a Getting the Love You Want Weekend Workshop. Why? Several answers:

1. Because the workshop is enlightening, connecting and extremely positive and hopeful, and gets your therapy off to a productive start.
2. Because the workshop is efficient – it accomplishes the equivalent of weeks in therapy.
3. Because the workshop gives you a set of tools and instructions for using them, AND….
4. The follow-up therapy ensures that you actually use the tools you were given.
5. It’s more cost-effective to attend a workshop, and it is CERTAINLY more cost-effective than divorce and maintaining two households!
6. The combination of therapy and workshop increases the chances of turning a negative relationship into a positive, loving relationship in fairly short order.

Look at like this: the workshop provides a dramatic, “tectonic” shift that helps you feel closer and connected. You will leave the workshop with a new understanding and a new skill-set. The old negative patterns, however, could creep back in without regular exercise of a new skill-set. Weekly sessions coach you on staying with your new skills until they become your go-to pattern. Habits take about 12 weeks to be formed, so after you’ve invested in a workshop and experienced positive change as a result, you want to be sure the change is permanent.

Conflict is growth trying to happen. There is a reason for the power struggle phase of the relationship and the reason is NOT for you to suffer or be miserable. It IS a portal for growth and healing for you AND your partner. Sign up today. Discover the conscious, mature relationship. You will not regret the experience of growth and healing.

I received an e-mail alert that the Dalai Lama will be at Emory later this month, talking about mindfulness, compassion, and the treatment of depression. That should be good, and I hope to go. Depression is a relevant topic, affecting millions of people, causing much suffering. It is also among the most treatable conditions.

Depression may be either “chemical” or “situational”. A chemical imbalance can be treated with an antidepressant, which increases serotonin in the brain, thereby increasing the feeling of well-being.

With a situational depression, you have the *event*, and you have your perception of the event. The event may be a death or other loss. You may feel trapped in a job or relationship. Or perhaps haunted by the past. Despair and hoplessness may consume you, and send you into a spiral toward the abyss. Perspective may be distorted. This is a dangerous, yet temporary place. Not a time to make huge decisions or sweeping changes. Time, rather, to ask for support, and garner some lost perspective. Others may not realize what you’re going through unless you ask.

We all experience times of difficulty. The meaning we attach to these times is often a function of how we were raised or other *past* issues. Be aware of how you see the present. How much of the past are you attaching? Were you shamed as a child, and are you shaming yourself now? Or are you offering yourself the encouragement that we all need at times?

Become aware of the habitual thoughts that light up in your brain, because, as you may know, thoughts produce chemistry, and chemistry is either the problem or the solution. Thoughts of your own strengths, hope, compassion, goodness, positive outcome (see the last post) will generate a far better feeling than irrational, negative thoughts. Even if life is dealing you a difficult hand, you can still find hope and beauty on a daily basis. This is a must. If you can find and experience hope, compassion, trust, beauty and kindness toward yourself and others, you’re on your path out of despair. I suspect this is what the Dalai Lama will discuss.

Nurture compassion for yourself and others. Ask for help if you need it. And by all means, avoid shame. If you’ve done something wrong, right it. Apologize, redeem yourself, forgive yourself, and move on. You cannot change the past. But you can stop beating yourself up. If someone has done YOU wrong, find your voice, speak up, take care of yourself and reclaim your power. Let go of what is weighing you down, and allow your energy to increase.

Be good to yourself.

“Do not brood over your past mistakes and failures as this will only fill your mind with grief, regret and depression. Do not repeat them in the future. ” Swami Sivananda

“When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change”.  – Wayne Dyer

When you find yourself frustrated, annoyed, defensively reacting, avoiding your partner, you are focused on the tiny fraction of your life that is negative. What we think about is what we grow.  Negativity is toxic and addictive.

Relationship is a journey where we eventually learn that we live with an OTHER person.  When you give an appreciation to the other, tell your partner what you love about them, or do a caring behavior, you are changing the dance… and growing what is good.   What do you do that makes your partner feel safe, loved and cared about?  Do these, and magically your relationship will change.  You don’t have to lose yourself by showing up for your partner.  In fact,  you will become the very best YOU you can be!

My next workshop is May 12 & 13, here in Atlanta.  Please pass it on.  Getting The Love You Want

Live into the 80% or more that is going well.

It’s not about confessing your partner’s sins.  It’s about speaking in a way that allows your partner to hear you.  As in actual listening. Yep!  Every word… heard. Here’s another hint: It’s about safety.
Criticism and demands keep you from being heard and perpetuate pain and frustration. It’s not fun and it doesn’t work, so why do it? Because it’s an unconscious, defensive, habitual pattern.  Break the pattern; learn more positive ways to live, love and communicate.

My next weekend workshop for gay and lesbian couples is April 14 – 15, 2012, here in Atlanta. Please pass it on!

Happy Spring! Oh, and speaking of happy, wouldn’t you know that you’ll both be happier when you feel understood?

How do you feel about who you are? How do you like the way I just put that question RIGHT out there? No sense tip-toeing around it. If self-esteem is the problem, then let’s get to work on it.

I am often asked about how to increase self-esteem; so often, as a matter of fact, I’m considering a little mini-course. Maybe a weekend? Contact me if you’re interested.

But here’s the deal about self-esteem: It’s your gauge of your own worth. It appears to be a function or result of insight (how well you know yourself) and how you live (how well you manage stress, take care of yourself etc.)

Insight development begins in early childhood. Those early messages play a huge role, but take heart if you got some negative ones. You can heal them. Insight is knowing yourself and believing in your own abilities. Do you know yourself well enough to know that you can solve problems, and you don’t have to hide from them? Problems and challenges are a fact of life and learning to face and solve those problems increases self-esteem, while hiding (behind addictions, or weight, or blaming and shaming yourself or others) lowers self-esteem. This is why we know bullies have low self-esteem. Picking on others is a classic symptom of a person masking their own insecurities. Negative attitudes toward others lowers self-esteem. Treating yourself and others with respect raises self-esteem. So there’s that.

Here’s another little hint. Children are naturally egocentric – the world revolves around them. There are many implications here, but the most relevant one to self-esteem is this: your childhood egocentrism may have contributed to the idea that the bad things that happened were your fault. If blame and criticism were part of growing up, then you may have learned to manage it by blaming yourself, and the blame game got encoded. It can be hard to shake, and if you’re not conscious, blame becomes an everyday way of doing business. If you blame yourself or you’re running around confessing other people’s sins for them, you’re perpetuating your low self-esteem. It’s not helping you, and it’s not helping anyone else, so my suggestion is, simply lose the blame. Instead, take responsibility for your SELF, let others take responsibility for their self and you’ll find you can raise your self-esteem, and you will be happier.

Another way to raise it is to take good care of yourself. Literally. Get enough rest, exercise, eat healthy, nutritious food, laugh and have fun, enjoy what you truly love in life. Your worth is not determined by how much you suffer or sacrifice for others. Your worth doesn’t change! Doing nice things for others is great when you have it to give, but doing so trying to prove your worth, at the expense of yourself takes a toll, creates more stress, resentment, and perpetuates low self-esteem. Manage stress so that you’re in eustress, not distress, by taking care of yourself.

Here’s another way to take care of yourself. Learn to speak up for yourself kindly, but assertively. Assertive statements begin with “I” (blame statements begin with “you”). For example, “I’d like to be in a position to do that, but I’ll have to say no this time.” Do you have a hard time saying no? If you do, then you’re probably carrying a pretty heavy burden of taking care of others, but not yourself, which lowers self- esteem. Raise it by learning to speak up for yourself.

See how much control you have, as it turns out?

You’re worth is not determined by how hard you work, how much you suffer, or sacrifice, how much money you make, how you look, what you drive or what others think of you. Your worth doesn’t change. We’re all the same worth. How to raise your self-esteem? Look into your own mirror instead of using projections. Set your own goals and move toward them, live your own values, take responsibility AND care of yourself.

Try these behaviors and call me in a month.

Your partner probably hasn’t changed that much from when you fell in love. What changed, likely, was your experience of him / her. You were wearing rose colored glasses back then, courtesy of Mother Nature’s love potion and your very own endocrine system.

When the chemistry inevitably dropped, you experienced things you hadn’t noticed before.   Assuming you were disappointed, sad, anxious, scared, hurt or frustrated, your own defense system kicked into gear.  Of course, your defense hurt your partner, and your partner, in turn, defended in ways that hurt you.

This scenario is the problem – not your partner!   Focus on your side of the street. Make sure it’s sparkling clean, then gift your partner with a caring behavior, spoken in THEIR love language.   Be sure and use the “Platinum Rule”: Do unto others as they would have done unto them.  I’ll bet if you do that, you’ll begin see the person you fell in love with.

Oh, and daily appreciations make for a positive relationship!

So often, it’s not the love that is missing; it’s the loving behavior. Fighting, bickering, criticizing have become the language of everyday life, replacing the joy and love that was once so easy and natural. You may even be considering leaving – not because you don’t love your partner, but you are tired of the pain.

You may be in the “power struggle”, aka “growth trying to happen”. Conflicts can become connections when we establish a new way to interact. Also, is it possible that what your partner ultimately asks of you would make you a better person?

Two important ways you can improve your relationship: One is HOW you communicate; the other is eliminating negativity (blame, shame, criticism).

Understand that communication is negative and hurtful because you’re defending. You may even be thinking that the other person wants you to hurt. Or that if the other person would just come around to your perspective, all would be ok. “You and I are one, and I’m the ONE”, right? We’ve got to get that there is room for both people in this relationship. Not one, but TWO. The differences between two people are natural, and ok. I would recommend that you try approaching the differences with curiosity rather than demands or defensiveness. When I say defensive, think “claws”. “Why would your partner come anywhere near you when your claws are swiping ”? It only creates more need to defend, whether passive or aggressive, and it perpetuates the fighting and pain. Take a break from adrenaline-induced fighting, and when you’re calmer, and with your claws tucked away, and ask your partner to describe his/her feelings. Listen with true curiosity and compassion. Try to imagine what it’s like to be him /her.

I often ask my clients “what do you want”? And the answer is “well I want her to stop doing X”. Then I say “Ok, what would she be doing instead”? That one requires thoughtful re-framing. We would benefit greatly from framing our requests in the positive. Instead of “stop doing x”, think for a moment, what is it that I really want? For example, “I want to state my perspective and have you accept it at face value” is much easier for her to hear than “you are so critical”! Notice the positive statement begins with “I” and the negative statement begins with “you”. Criticism plucks the “shame” chord, and HURTS your partner. Much more effective is “I want to be loved unconditionally”.

Eliminating negativity in your requests involves you taking responsibility for asking for what you DO want, and doing so in a way that invites the loving tenderness you seek. Understand that your partner has needs and desires, too. Ask your partner how you can help. Let your guard down and listen. Be responsive rather than reactive.

Intimacy is vulnerability. Vulnerability involves risk. If you see your partner vulnerable, show up with tenderness. Respond with loving behavior and defensiveness will be replaced with something far more satisfying.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

How much do you love your partner? What I mean is, how much do you show your
love through your caring behaviors? Do you love your partner in the way that he / she wants to be loved?

Remember the platinum rule:  Do unto others what they would have done unto them.

I had the pure joy of presenting a workshop this past weekend.   It was positive and connecting, the couples were beautifully willing to learn about each other, and all in all did some fabulous stuff, like unpacking conflicts, and replacing distant, defensive sparse communication with understanding and connection.   And learning that our partner lives in a world where the perspective is different. Not wrong –just different.

We also helped partners remember what lights each other up, and how much they love it!

The more we show our love through those thoughtful, caring behaviors, the more positive our relationship becomes, and the better we all feel about ourselves.

We are all about eliminating negativity, restoring connection, and improving the quality of life as we grow and grow up.

The more you live in the love, the cooler your life together.