Welcome to my Blog
Thank you for stopping by. This space is where I share research, reflections, and practical tools drawn from my experience as a marriage and family therapist.
Are you a couple looking for clarity? A professional curious about the science of relationships? Or simply someone interested in how love and resilience work? I’m glad you’ve found your way here. I can help with that.
Each post is written with one goal in mind: to help you better understand yourself, your partner, and the hidden dynamics that shape human connection.
Grab a coffee (or a notebook), explore what speaks to you, and take what’s useful back into your life and relationships. And if a post sparks a question, or makes you realize you could use more support, I’d love to hear from you.
Be Well, Stay Kind, and Godspeed.
~Daniel
P.S.
Feel free to explore the categories below to find past blog posts on the topics that matter most to you. If you’re curious about attachment, navigating conflict, or strengthening intimacy, these archives are a great way to dive deeper into the research and insights that I’ve been sharing for years.
- Attachment Issues
- Coronavirus
- Couples Therapy
- Extramarital Affairs
- Family Life and Parenting
- How to Fight Fair
- Inlaws and Extended Families
- Intercultural Relationships
- Marriage and Mental Health
- Married Life & Intimate Relationships
- Neurodiverse Couples
- Separation & Divorce
- Signs of Trouble
- Social Media and Relationships
- What Happy Couples Know
Ending an emotional affair with a co-worker: how does a big problem not get bigger?
If you realize that you are sliding into an emotional affair with a coworker, you first need to stop kidding yourself.
Ending an emotional relationship with a co-worker isn’t easy when the consequences are not readily apparent.
Here are 7 ways to snap the f*ck out of it…
The problem of Passive-Aggressive nice guys…
Passive Aggression is incredibly annoying in intimate relationships.
With effort, a passive-aggressive personality disorder can learn to engage more directly.
But it is a team effort. You both can change how you respond to each other. It will take some work.
Here are some suggestions that are both sensible and specific…
How often do couples fight?
The frequency of fighting is no reliable guide to marital bliss.
Some strong, vibrant couples are very volatile and clash readily.
And then there are conflict-avoidant couples that avoid fighting …right smack into a crisis...
Let’s learn more…
The challenge of thought-stopping…
Modern Thought-Stopping techniques have roots in Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy.
However, Thought-Stopping is also an ancient method of self-management.
It is a well-known mental exercise in the East and the West, specifically, ancient Greek and Roman Stoic philosophy and Buddhism.
Ancient philosophers invite you to notice your thoughts and the degree to which you indulge them…
How Depression shapes our self-concept…
Depression can profoundly influence how humans perceive themselves, leading to a negative self-concept.
This distorted self-view often includes feelings of worthlessness, incapability, and a sense of being stuck without a way forward.
Research suggests that this negative self-schema develops as depressed folks selectively remember and focus on negative events in their lives.
In praise of integrated behavioral couples therapy
IBCT is unique among couple therapies in that it promoted the notion of acceptance, a fundamental staple of ancient Stoic Philosophy and the Warrior’s Code.
No wonder the Veterans administration took a deep interest in the IBCT Model…
Is there hope for my marriage after separation?
An Ohio State University study discovered that nearly 80% of separated couples ultimately divorce.
Some therapists have set up small cottage industries specializing in drafting separation agreements.
At the risk of sounding flip, a couples therapist who specializes in crafting separation agreements is like a surgeon who brags that they own a chain of funeral parlors…
How to rebuild intimacy after an affair
There was an affair. It’s over and done.
You’re still working on forgiveness and reconciliation.
You are in couples therapy, and you are slowly healing. But you want to improve even faster. Do you want to learn how to rebuild intimacy after an affair?
Here’s the one thing you must do…
Men and Emotional Affairs…
Emotional affairs are a common problem that I often work on in intensive marriage retreats.
New research has explained how men and emotional affairs; how they begin, gain traction, and build momentum…
4 Ways to enjoy a happier relationship that you’ve probably never heard before…
I’m always seeking new research to help couples enjoy happier and more connected relationships.
I spend about 20 hours every month reviewing research journals to bring you the freshest and most compelling ideas in research-driven couples therapy.
Here are 4 obscure and little-known ways to experience delight in each other that you probably never heard before…
7 reasons you might think twice before asking for a sleep divorce
A “sleep divorce” is when a couple lives together, but does not sleep in the same bed.
What role does poor sleep hygiene play in needlessly stressing marriages?
Financial infidelity and financial intimacy
Financial infidelity vs. financial intimacy?
Why is money such as flash point for couples these days?