The №1 Sign of an Emotionally Mature Relationship

“We need help,” a couple in therapy offered as their opening line. They weren’t joking. Their 12-year relationship had deteriorated into a cesspool of conflict, anger and resentment. Neither could speak without triggering an emotionally-charged response in the other. If there was any love left between them, it wasn’t on show. That’s not surprising. Not for a therapist, anyway. A lot of relationships land here — even when they started out shiny and full of promise. What was more intriguing was that they were intelligent, capable, people. They were successful at work. They enjoyed good relationships with family, co-workers and friends. People liked them. They appeared to treat others with kindness and respect. Yet when it came to each other they were lost. What was going on? <h1>When two is (way) better than one</h1> It’d be easy to say this couple lacked emotional intelligence — but that’s probably not fair. Nor is it entirely true. Individually, they both functioned fairly well. But the emotional dynamic between them had become so unhealthy — so dysfunctional — that it brought the worst of them to the surface. It had become almost impossible for them to be in the same room without igniting a fuse in the other. Every conversations was a powerplay, a bid to be seen or heard. They labelled it “communication issues”. I (privately) labelled it sad. <a href="https://medium.com/on-the-couch/the-1-sign-of-an-emotionally-mature-relationship-92a71514a466">Read More</a>