Several years ago, a prominent politician made the comment that he would not eat alone with a woman other than his wife. Some people were offended–claiming that statement and behavior degraded women. Others stated his behavior was archaic. As a marriage therapist, it was curious for me to watch this national conversation unfold. Perhaps I…
Insurance coverage for couples’ therapy can vary depending on the insurance company and policy. While some insurance plans may provide coverage for couples’ therapy, it’s important to note that not all insurance plans cover this type of therapy. The best way to know what is covered under your plan is to call the number on…
The other day I was walking through Costco when I heard a husband suggest to his wife that they get a bag of dog food. She critically responded, “We don’t need that whole bag of dog food. He’ll never go through it all.” “It was just a suggestion,” her husband responded with an edge of…
A couple of weeks ago my husband and I were running errands. I thought we were going to Kohls to make some returns, he thought we were going to Lowe’s. He was driving. We are still new to this city, so we are still trying to find our way around town. I didn’t think he…
Research suggests that being in an unhappy relationship can have negative health effects. Studies have found that people who are in unhappy relationships are more likely to experience a range of health problems, including cardiovascular disease, chronic pain, depression, anxiety, and other mental health issues. In fact, some research has suggested that the health effects…
In his book, Better, writer, surgeon, and researcher Dr. Atul Gwande asked, “What does it take to be good at something in which failure is so easy, so effortless?” I hear this concern from many couples in medical relationships. When I ask physician couples what topics are most pressing and concerning to them, the overwhelming…
There have been several studies examining medical marriages and relationship satisfaction. One study found that most partners or spouses (86.8%) are happy and satisfied in their relationships. Interestingly, the number one predictor of satisfaction wasn’t the physician’s specialty, work hours, or practice setting—it was the amount of time the couple spent together (and awake!) each…
Guest Post by Maria Eniss After posting Surviving Residency: The 10 Things I Learned While My Husband was a General Surgery Resident, I received an email from a friend of mine and fellow surgeon’s wife. Maria Ennis is the wife of a Critical Care/Trauma Surgeon and is the mother of five. She was already a couple…
Question: We are second year medical students. First year medical school was rough–and we have lots of layers to our situation. One of them is that we have two kids under 4-years old and we live 2000 miles away from family. My main question is how to manage a relationship (romantic/connected/sexual and being vulnerable) with my…
Dear Parents, What an exciting opportunity for you to see your son or daughter progressing in his or her career as a physician! You are the ones that were there, encouraging this process for years: reading bedtime stories, attending parent-teacher conferences, helping with hours of homework and those dreaded yearly science fair projects, and teaching those all-important…
One afternoon, while my husband and I were snorkeling off a fairly remote beach in Kauai, I learned a frightening lesson about how quickly one can drift off course. As we swam through the crystal-clear water, we were captivated by the underwater world of colorful fish and vibrant coral reefs. With our heads and our…
I hope you had a wonderful Valentines weekend. I missed my usual Friday post because I was leading a two-day marriage conference this weekend. What a remarkable experience we had! We tune up everything in our lives. We fertilize the lawn each spring, take the car for routine maintenance and oil changes, and get…