Is sex really an important aspect of a relationship? And how often is often enough?
Your immediate response might be: “Heck yeah, Tracey! It is!” Some of you may be thinking—it’s important but not all the time! Once, maybe twice a week and you’re good. Still, many of you don’t regularly engage in sex and your relationships are satisfying and fulfilling without it.
But what do you do when your sex life isn’t what it used to be—or how you want it to be—and it’s become a problem in your relationship or your marriage?
Can you fix it?
Are there professionals who can help you?
Can a marriage survive issues in the bedroom?
Yes, yes, and yes!
Today’s guest is Jessa Zimmerman, a licensed couples’ counselor and a nationally certified sex therapist in Seattle, Washington. Jessa is the author of Sex Without Stress, the host of the Better Sex Podcast, and is a regularly featured expert in the media, including Marriage.com, Mind Body Green, Refinery29, and Business Insider.
While so many couples talk in circles—fighting about sex or avoiding it altogether—Jessa believes that there are ways to avoid those blunders and work together to create your best possible sex life, increase your relationship satisfaction, reduce your stress level, free up energy for the things you want to do together, and make you excited to go to bed.
I’m thrilled to dive in with Jessa in today’s episode.
Listen to the full episode to hear:
Common myths that are killing your sex life
The 3 most common issues impacting your sex life and how to fix them
How couples—with seemingly different sex drives—are still completely compatible in the bedroom
Why a couple’s sex life may ebb and flow throughout life—and ways to evolve with those changes
What sex therapy looks like and how long Jessa typically works with a couple (it’s not as long as you think!)
Divorce doesn’t scar children – parents’ bad behavior does!
This might sound a little harsh but it is 100% true. The constant bickering, manipulation, and overall bad manners that parents drag their children through during a divorce is a damaging experience for everyone involved.
It is the crux of why some kids feel hurt, confused, stressed, and resentful of one or both of their parents.
Many experts agree that the level of hostility and conflict between parents is one of the top reasons why families, specifically children, are devastated by a divorce.
But it doesn’t have to be this way.
Today’s return guest, Sheila Adams Gardner, is a family law attorney, mediator, and co-parenting coach in Washington, D.C. She is the author of Two Houses One Family, a book that presents a positive outlook on the possibilities of a two household family.
Inspired by her own parents’ co-parenting journey, Sheila founded Cooperative Strategies Family Law to help parents create their own healthy two-household families. As a family law attorney, she knows firsthand how important it is to prioritize the well-being of children during an emotional and stressful time.
The divorce process is never a smooth transition; even when done on the best of terms it’s likely there will be some measure of difficulty. But you can dramatically minimize the negative effect it has on your children if you keep their well-being as your top priority.
We’re excited to have Sheila join us today to talk about what’s possible.
Listen to the full episode to hear:
How Sheila, a child of divorced parents, benefited greatly from parents who were able to successfully co-parent
How Sheila’s personal background and connection to divorced parents led her to write the book Two Houses, One Family
How separating and divorcing parents can effectively model similar behaviors for the sake of their children
What the long-lasting effects of successful co-parenting are on the children and the parents alike
Finding love again after a divorce can be difficult.
It’s difficult the first time around it’s even harder the 2nd time around particularly when children are involved. How do you successfully step into the role of a parent? How do you know that your past issues aren’t going to follow you into your new relationship?
One of the things that I’m really excited to do on the show is talking to people about the highs and lows of their relationships and how they’ve managed to work through those issues in a real and honest way or the reasons behind why some couples choose to end their relationships and go their separate ways.
In today’s episode, I had the pleasure of talking with Chyanne and Darryl Smith, hosts of the We Got This Podcast, in an honest, heartfelt conversation about how their relationship began, their biggest struggles and how their marriage continues to endure nearly 10 years later.
I absolutely love the fact that they weren’t afraid to dive straight to the heart of what was important to them and the realities and expectations of what they wanted and needed in a new relationship and wasted no time getting straight to the point.
Listen to the full episode to hear:
How the realities of a relationship after divorce compare to Darryl and Chyanne’s expectations
Why Darryl, who was previously married and the father of two daughters, really felt like the court system was not structured to support fathers during the divorce process
How Chyanne, a child of divorced parents, really empathized with Darryl’s girls and took her role as step-parent very seriously.
How not all step-parent relationships have to be filled with strife and conflict
And how a deep and loving bond can really be formed particularly when couples start with a healthy foundation for themselves
We’re currently in the midst of a global pandemic with the entire world being directly impacted by COVID-19. Schools, malls, restaurants, courts, business, and even all of the Walt Disney theme parks have shut down around the world.
And yes, the legal system is shut down, too.
So, if you were in the midst of a separation or divorce prior to the shutdown, it’s likely come to an abrupt halt. And, like many of my clients, you’re probably feeling frustrated, worried, or simply at a loss for how to move forward in spite of everything.
The good news?
It is possible to keep things moving forward.
Despite all the bad news you’re hearing on a daily basis, there is good news for your current situation and peace of mind.
It’s called Online Divorce Resolution – mediation facilitated by technology.
Today’s guest, Melissa Kucinksi, is joining us for the second time to talk about how you can use technology to continue to move forward during this unprecedented time and also in the future when this crisis is behind us.
Melissa is a family law attorney and mediator, in the Washington, D.C. area. The use of technology in the legal system, particularly in the family law arena, is becoming increasingly commonplace. And now, in the age of social distancing, we’re utilizing it more and more every day.
Melissa served as a consultant to the Hague Conference on Private International Law and has written a dozen articles on international children’s issues and mediation of complex cross-border custody and abduction cases. She has taught the International Family Law course at the George Washington University School of Law since 2010. She is a fellow of the International Academy of Family Lawyers.
I am very honored to have Melissa on the show.
Listen to the full episode to hear:
What specifically is Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) and what the benefits of resolving disputes online are
What is different between the online vs. in-person mediation process What the benefits of mediation are over litigation in terms of going the distance in court
How Melissa uses ODR in her personal practice
How training specifically for online dispute resolution is different from traditional mediation
What to look for in an ODR professional to facilitate this alternative to litigation and what makes for a good mediator
