The Stress Reducing Conversation

The stress reducing conversation, as the Gottman Institute coins it, also known as the « hey honey, how was your day? » conversation is a lot more important for your relationship than you might think.
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When done with intention this reasonably simple conversation has been found to greatly reduce extras stress from spilling over into your relationship. .
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With intention what I mean is being completely present to each other during this conversation (no phones!!), setting aside enough time for everyone to feel heard, allow each other to feel whatever they are feeling (don’t fix!), and recognize that during this conversation is not the time to bring up relationship issues. .
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Allowing space for each other to share what’s been going on during your day, stresses you’ve had at work, creates the ability to decompress and let go of those stresses as you continue into your evening together. See @gottmaninstitute for tips on how to have this stress reducing conversation.