Many of my female Portland marriage counselor clients complain of relationship issues because their male partners don’t listen to them and often seem clueless about how to deal with or even discuss their feelings. In recent years, this phenomenon has even gotten a name: “Stupid Boy Syndrome.” I prefer to call it “cluelessness”, and skip [...]

As a Portland relationship counselor, I try to pay attention to new research and trends so that I can better help my clients with their marriage problems. Recently I ran across a study about how generosity between partners can make your relationship feel satisfying, even in the face of other issues.
The study was conducted by [...]

Relationship issues change with the times, but perhaps never as fast as they have in recent years. Like it or not, we now live in an age where “private lives” is an oxymoron. The second anything happens to most of us, it’s been posted, tweeted, tagged, or blogged about – if not by us, then [...]

One of the top reasons that couples seek relationship help is money. In fact, it’s common to have one partner that’s frugal and one that would rather enjoy the money they have, which will naturally lead to problems.
In a 2010 survey, one third of all married people surveyed reported lying about money to their spouses. [...]

The Beatles’ relationship advice that money can’t buy you love is true. A recent study by Brigham Young University asked over 1,700 couples across the country to complete a marriage study where one question asked them to rate how much they value “having money and lots of things.” The couples who reported that money isn’t [...]

Technology causes a whole new host of relationship issues for the modern marriage. We have more and more things competing for our attention, leaving less time to focus on our relationships. Don’t think your affinity for technology is an issue? Consider this recent finding about one significant distraction: people are in love with their iPhones [...]

One of the most common relationship issues that cause people to seek Portland marriage counseling is conflict, so I found it interesting when a recent study from Ohio State University reported that conflict levels don’t change much over the course of a marriage. They followed nearly 1,000 couples over 20 years, and the differences they [...]

This Portland marriage counselor knows that relationship success hinges on secure bonding from good communication. Communication breakdown is the number one reason for divorce. Romantic partners must do many things to get the message of love across to their partner. A secure bond helps to divorce-proof your relationship. All communication is not verbal. Couples communicate [...]

As a Portland marriage and relationship counselor, I can’t tell you how often I’ve seen marriage problems that are exacerbated or even caused by too much public disclosure. With the advent of Facebook and other social networks, it has become even easier to let everyone know every intimate detail of your relationship, and many of [...]

My years as a Portland relationship counselor have taught me that the best marriage enhancement is spending time quality together. Nothing else helps as much to avoid affairs or divorce. If you are like most couples you experience multiple challenges to finding that time. One major time drain is the interference of media.
Just 20 years [...]