FAMILY RELATIONS

The American Bar Association has proven that 89 percent of all divorces can be traced to quarrels and accusations over money. That being said, having a financially stable young family requires careful planning and wise financial habits. Some tips to help achieve financial stability include: Pay an honest tithe: Successful financial management in every LDS home begins with an honest tithe. Paying an honest tithe shows your obedience and dedication to fulfilling God's work. "When we pay tithing we show gratitude for all that God has given us and return to Him a portion of what we have received" (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints). Create a Budget : Start by tracking your income and expenses to create a realistic budget. Allocate your income towards essential expenses like housing, utilities, food, and transportation. Set aside a portion for savings and investments, and establish limits for discretionary spending. Emergency Fund : Build an emergency fund that c...

We have all heard that communication is the ' key ' to a lasting, happy relationship. However, we often misinterpret that and not all communication leads to a happy ending, so to speak. There are forms of communication that can have negative impacts and hurt others. In a podcast, David D. Burns discusses five communication secrets that can transform conflict and misunderstanding into intimacy and conviction. These “Secrets of Effective Communication” revolve around Empathy, Assertiveness, and Respect. They can also be remembered using the acronym, EAR.    The first “secret” of effective communication is the “ Disarming Technique ”. This is where you find truth in what the other person is saying, even if it seems illogical, self-serving, distorted, or just plain “wrong.” This will most likely require intently listening. Another great idea to add to the disarming technique is to replace negative untrue thoughts with true positive thoughts. There is something ...

A crisis is a turning point with the potential for positive or negative effects or both. Anything a person does as a result of a crisis is a coping pattern, whether they do it on purpose or not. That may be doing nothing. That may also be blaming others. The way an individual deals with a crisis can either be beneficial or unproductive. The following paragraph will describe coping patterns while diving deeper into the definition and effect they have been being used to deal with an issue.    Some signs of Ineffective Coping may be: Denying the problem . This occurs when someone will not perceive things how they really are and refuses to accept the truth. For example, if a woman is abused by her husband, she may deny the fact that he is abusive, and it is an unhealthy relationship because she fears the truth. To break out of the denial pattern, a person must admit there is a problem and choose how to move forward to fix it.  Avoiding the issue . Someone may acknowledge th...

How can you still feel 'close' with the person you are dating without going "too far"? What can you do once the ‘honeymoon’ stage ends in your relationship? How can you show your partner that you love them without including physical touch or inappropriate intimacy? To begin, what exactly is the "honeymoon phase"? The honeymoon phase seems, well, almost perfect. You notice more good than bad, and you’re almost on a “high” of love. Flaws are hard to notice. This occurs because of the flood of dopamine in your brain (aka the pleasure hormone). “ There is a chemical reaction that’s going on in our brains', says Dr. Childs. ' It’s like a reward system. " ' Yet after months of dating, the 'honeymoon stage' fades, and the small, innocent kisses can sometimes feel like not enough. So… how do you know when you are out of the ‘honeymoon stage’? Five of the signs that start becoming clear once the ‘honeymoon phase’ fades are: You find more thin...

How long should a person wait before "popping the question"? According to Elizabeth Earnshaw, LMFT, a licensed marriage therapist, time does matter. She constructed a study of 3,000 married couples and found that those who waited at least a year drastically increased the odds of a successful marriage. The couples who dated for one to two years before getting engaged were 20 percent less likely to get divorced than those who got engaged in less than a year. Furthermore, couples who had been together for three or more years before getting engaged were nearly 50 percent less likely to get divorced. The honeymoon phase can last anywhere from about three months to a year. Earnshaw suggests that couples move out of the honeymoon phase before getting engaged, so "they are going in with eyes wide open." In a reading from Insider titled, "How long you should date before getting engaged, according to therapists", they list multiple specific physiological changes tha...