#couplescorner

During the holiday season, we often hear reminders to be thankful and show gratitude to others. In keeping with this tradition, for this month’s Couple’s Corner I would like to remind you to show gratitude to your partner. Did you know, healthy couples have a ratio of 5:1 positive interactions to negative interactions? In contrast, those in unstable marriages maintain a ratio of .8:1 of positivity to negativity. This means that in order to maintain a happy relationship, we need to have a regular dose of positive interactions to balance out the inevitable conflicts. One way to increase these positive interactions is to make it a habit to share one thing that you are grateful for, admire or appreciate about your partner. This is a practice I invite couples to do at the end of every counseling session. However, I often hear from my clients that this practice is easy to integrate into their daily routine. This can be done every night as you’re debriefing your day together, or maybe even at the dinner table with your children (great modeling!).