Note: This is the second of a two-part series. Here is a continuation of ways to keep the romance strong and vital in your intimate relationship: Touch. Touch is the greatest aphrodisiac that exists. It helps us to get close, feel close and stay close. If you’re not touching each other a lot, your relationship […]
The Essence of Romance
As we approach Valentine’s Day this year, I would like to highlight some of the best ways to keep your relationship romantic, close, connected and hot: Learn how to nurture. When you think of nurturing a child, most people know what that means. But when you nurturing your intimate partner, many people give blank stares […]
Intimate Relationships After Age 45
Facing The Challenges of The Second Half of Life Dear Neil: I am 45 and in a new intimate relationship that shows a lot of potential for a stable, long-term commitment. I have been married before, have raised kids, paid down a mortgage, acquired possessions, advanced in a career and experimented sexually, which leads me […]
Exercises to Enhance Closeness and Intimacy
The following is a collection of couples enrichment exercises taken from the “Brief Couples Therapy Homework Planner” by Gary Schultheis, Bill O’Hanlon and Steffanie O’Hanlon (John Wiley and Sons). Try these exercises out as a way of enriching and deepening the intimacy between you: Find five things you would do if you were really in […]
When You’re Smitten
When was the last time you felt smitten? People who are smitten live in a different world than everyone else. The normal world includes highs and lows, work, fun, joy, chores, bills, worries—in fact, all the pleasures, pains and responsibilities of real life. Not so when you’re smitten. These words come to mind in describing […]
Wooing
Ah, springtime. The time when nature wakes up again. Birds migrate back to the north. Plants burst out of the ground with a profusion of green everywhere. Flowers bloom. Fish spawn. Animals breed. All of nature comes alive. Including us. And the way many of us express that aliveness, stimulated by springtime, is through urges […]
Expressing Love and Appreciation to Your Valentine
When was the last time you told your Valentine how valued s/he was? How special? What you appreciate and how much you appreciate him or her? In honor of Valentine’s Day, here is an exercise if you’d like to correct that oversight—and infuse your relationship with renewed appreciation and gratitude. Select from the following list […]
Valentine Lessons in Being the Best You Can Be
Following is a list of Valentine suggestions for how to be the very best partner, spouse, lover and/or mate you can be. Don’t use lame excuses to avoid doing your very best in your intimate relationship, such as “I don’t have the time or the energy.” If your mate doesn’t rank up there with your […]
Outrageously Romantic Ideas to Keep Your Relationship Sizzling
What does sizzling romance consist of? Romance is about attempting to connect and stay connected to someone else. If you are a true romantic, you define yourself as a “lover” regardless of other roles; you’re in touch with your feelings; you pursue new and different experiences and you make your intimate relationship a top priority […]
Bidding for Greater Emotional Connection
Note: This is the first of a two-part series. Do you often find your intimate partner to be too busy to be emotionally available to you? Do you have trouble getting him/her to really listen to you? To open up to you? To trust you? To share his/her true feelings with you? Do you get […]