The longer we live together, the more familiar we become with each other’s habits, language, and gestures. This does not necessarily mean we are growing closer and more intimate. Obviously, the more we share, the more often we share, the more...
Hopefully you are familiar with the term “helpmate”. It comes from the creation story and was God’s answer to not living life alone. But the question (and encouragement) I am putting on the table today is to actually “help” your...
Pardon me for using a bowling term, but it is the best way I could describe our efforts to keep the ball on the lane. Keep the bumpers up if you don’t want to end up in the gutter. No....
If you have gotten stuck in staleness, hostility, or distance, there is a way out. There are things that lead to greater distance and things that will lead you back to intimacy and closeness. The major stance that will lead...
I often think of the marriage as a large fishing net and every promise kept as a knot tied in the net. We will need a thousand knots tied, one at a time, day by day. We will need this...
One of the very challenging aspects of marriage is the giving and receiving of feedback. We have to express our needs and wants directly to our mate. We have to express the things that bother us. Ouch! Hopefully we have...
I want to address a very specific niche in a marriage partnership. This niche is not as small as you might think. There are many marriages that contain a partner, usually male, who was diagnosed with ADD/ADHD or totally went...
"Two becoming one” is an even greater challenge in a culture that has promoted and practiced individuality down to a fine art. I have heard friends point back to the days before central heat and air when the family gathered...
The Season of the Valentine
It is that time of year when we are especially focused on love. Sorry, but I think the world is focused more on the sappy kind of love. It is that emotionally laden version that comes through like weather. I...
Will Your Love Sustain?
I heard a joke one time about a man who loved this woman so much he wanted to “eat her up." And then he married her and a couple of years later, he wished he had. Oh well. Our feelings wax...
About the Author

Margaret Phillips is a Marriage and Family Therapist based in Nashville, Tennessee. She has been married for 48 years. She enjoys playing piano and loves overnights with her grandchildren.