This post was originally published on PartnerHope.com As a culture, how we live within our relationships and what we believe about our relationships is incongruent with how our bodily-based attachment systems actually function. We treat our attachments as much more ‘optional’ than they really are at the level of our basic biology. Our common belief is that if the relationship isn’t working for … [Read more...]
The Cycle of Ambivalence
This post was originally posted on PartnerHope's blog Attachment ambivalence is the phenomenon of having two opposing safety imperatives fire inside of you at the same time in response to betrayal. One safety imperative tells you to move away from and disconnect from the source of your pain in order to stay safe. The other safety imperative tells you to move close and figure out how to reconnect … [Read more...]
The Knowing And Not Knowing of Betrayal Blindness
Many betrayed partners come into therapy in a state of shock and disbelief about their partner’s extracurricular sexual behaviors. They sit on my couch and tell me they had no idea, not even an inkling, of what their significant other was doing. I listen to them, and I know that their shock and surprise about what they have discovered is real, and they truly did not know what was happening. But I … [Read more...]