The Healing Power of Family, Friends and Lovers

BY ARLENE F. HARDER, MA, MFT

After our need for food and shelter is met, we all have two primary psychological needs. One is the need to belong and the other is the need to be special. Our attempts to meet these needs are intricately woven into all our relationships.

So whether you want to have more friends, strengthen your marriage, become a better parent, get along better with your siblings, or simply develop greater communication skills in general, this section has fifteen categories that can help.

Below I have chosen just one article from each of them to give you a flavor of what you will find in this section. Then you can use the navigation bar on the left to find more than 50 other articles about creating happy and healthy relationships.

Couples - Finding the Perfect Mate: Marriage's Invisible Contract

Couples - Love and Intimacy: The Magic in Your Differences

Couples - Resolving Conflicts in a Relationship: Pick Your Battles Carefully

Couples - Relationship Stress-Busters: 60-Second Stress-Buster

Families - Family Dynamics: The Family's Life Cycle

Families - Family Bonds: What Are Your Family Rules?

Families - Parenting: Affirmations for Your Child

Families - Facing the End of Life Together: My Living Will

Families - Grieving: I Still Remember Them [illustrated poem]

Families - Looking to Future Generations: Planning for the Next Generation

Friends: Your Introvert Partner of Friend

Parents and Adult Children: How to Love Your Boomerang Child

Communication: Secrets: Toxic or Healthy?

Forgiveness: Five Kinds of Guilt

Improve All Relationships: Healing Relationships is an Inside Job