Description
A family therapist identifies overwork, consumerism, and overemphasis on personal fulfillment as major factors that pull couples apart. He shows young and long-term couples how to assess their own marital health, identify social pressures most destructive to them, and take active steps to stay connected. He explains how to break free of assumptions that work against long-term marital happiness, and offers suggestions for creating relationship rituals for closeness and celebration. He also discusses the problem of unintentional sabotage from family and counselors, and tells how choose a marriage counselor. Doherty is professor and director of the Marriage and Family Therapy Program at the University of Minnesota. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
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More than half of all marriages currently end in divorce, but most newlyweds are supremely confident about their own future happiness. They vow that they won't make the same mistakes their parents did, or their friends--that this time, love will last forever. From renowned family therapist and educator William J. Doherty, this indispensable book helps couples of any age break free of the pervasive attitudes and assumptions that can chip away at even the happiest marriage today. Readers learn how to stay alert to marital drift and how to restore a relationship worth saving, even when it seems too late. Dr. Doherty illuminates such common commitment eroders as treating marriage like a consumer purchase, confusing desires with needs, becoming overtime parents and part-time spouses, and giving in to unintentional sabotage from family, friends, or helping professionals. He shows instead how couples can take positive steps to nurture their marriage by creating relationship rituals that stand the test of time. The book includes self-tests that pinpoint hidden marital problems (and solutions), as well as examples that illustrate how these commonsense ideas can be applied to the complexities of real life.
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