Don’t Give Up on Your Marriage So Soon (2)

By Dr. Michael Brooks

This week I want to give you some tips that will help open the doors on repairing your relationship. The first step is realizing that you need to work on the marriage and admitting that you need help. There is nothing wrong to ask for someone to guide you through the turbulent waters of relationship issues. The golden rule I like to use when doing pre-marital counseling and working on your marriage, is to make sure that you:

• Communicate your needs, wants and desires well

• Listen with open ears and eyes
• Apologize often and ask for forgiveness
• Make sure that you appreciate your spouse and tell them so
• Be openly affectionate to your spouse, hold hands, walk arm in arm
• Give your spouse the attention they need from you

These are simple rules to live by and will help both of you enjoy a wonderful relationship that will last a lifetime. You both need to be committed and understand that an open and honest relationship is built on a solid foundation of love, trust, loyalty, integrity, commitment, and “I will not quit” spirit. All marriages can be hard at times, and they will have great rewards for those who are willing to roll up their sleeves and commit to making the marriage work. So many couples throw in the towel so early in the game and walk away from a reparable relationship. Some think that the grass is greener on the other side of the fence, remember this, if you water your own lawn it would be greener on your own side of the fence (meaning YOUR marriage).

What is the dark side of giving up on your marriage so soon? 

• If you have children, they will see you didn’t stick it out or give it your all
• There is always a chance that the marriage will survive and become stronger
• Resentment, bitterness, and anger will become a way of life
• You will most likely go through the “what if’s,” down the road
• You will wonder why you didn’t go to counseling and see what a counselor could have done to help you

Now, we also have to look at advantages of working on your marriage, and believe me there are many. I was talking to a friend of mine this morning, and she said that people are giving up on their marriages and not working on them as they used to.

Next week we will continue giving you some thoughts on how to proceed in repairing your relationship with your spouse.

Do you feel like you want to end your marriage, but you’re not sure if it’s the right action to take? Are you considering a divorce because you can’t communicate and nothing seems right in your relationship? Do you need to be heard and feel like anything you say goes in one ear and out the other? Have you begged your spouse to get counseling or marriage coaching and it falls on deaf ears? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you need contact Dr. Mike and set up an appointment. Don’t allow loneliness to control the new experiences that you can enjoy today.

Please call Dr. Mike at 303.880.9878. He can help you. He has helped people going through tough times of deciding to end a marriage or give it one more shot.

Dr. Michael Brooks is the founder of Applicable Counseling and life coaching Services. It is affordable, accessible, anonymous and available by appointment from the privacy of your home. To avoid travel time and the comfort of home, many clients prefer to meet with Dr. Mike over the phone or via Skype (if you want to Skype with Dr. Mike send him an email at mbrooks3353@gmail.com to set up an appointment). The convenience of this type of Counseling/Coaching is the most effective means of Life Coaching for those who live outside of Colorado. Give Dr. Mike a call! You’ll be glad you did!

Tis the Season of Divorce (3) By Dr. Michael Brooks

The third problem is that your spouse is married to their job. They can’t possibly leave their work at work and will bring it home for the holidays. They are constantly checking emails, cell phones, calling co-workers for updates. No matter what you have planned, they will get up and leave whatever is going on. You can’t reason with this kind of spouse. The job comes first, and you and your family comes second. This person seems unsettled with work and family. They do not commit to any holiday. You can’t get this person to take some time for the family. You may have Thanksgiving or a Christmas dinner planned and during the course of having your meal, and everyone is enjoying each other’s company, this spouse will get up with a cell phone in hand and will answer a call out in the hallway or in another room. This kind of action will make for a very angry spouse, eventually pleading and begging their spouse to turn the phone off. How many people do we know that will fit into this category? I certainly know some people that do and have seen it happen with my very own eyes.

Divorce during the holidays is becoming common

My tips for this person and please listen carefully. If you want to avoid ending up in a divorce court pay attention:

• Turn your phone off at dinner
• If you must answer the phone have a certain time that people can call you and not be available all day.
• If you can, let your staff or your boss know that you’re spending time with family it’s vacation time.
• Family first, if you don’t make them a priority you will not have a family to worry about.
• Pay attention to your spouse and kids; they need you!

These are simple rules to follow, but are necessary to keep harmony within the family during the holidays. If you want to keep your marriage intact, then I suggest that you work on a budget, have great communication and leave work at work and don’t allow others to fill your time. That my friend is reserved for your family. If you have time, make sure that your spouse feels important to you and love them as much as you can. Spending time together is a great way to heal a hurting relationship.

Do you dread the holidays, the family fights, the arguments? Are you considering a divorce because of the in-laws are making your life miserable? Do you need to be able to express that you don’t want to go to your in-laws and want the peace of staying home? Does your communication with your spouse, children need help? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you need contact Dr. Mike and set up an appointment. Don’t allow loneliness to control the new experiences that you can enjoy today.

Please call Dr. Mike at 303.880.9878. He can help you. He has helped several people going through tough times of loneliness.

Dr. Michael Brooks is the founder of Applicable Counseling and life coaching Services. It is affordable, accessible, anonymous and available by appointment from the privacy of your home. To avoid travel time and the comfort of home, many clients prefer to meet with Dr. Mike over the phone or via Skype (if you want to Skype with Dr. Mike send him an email at mbrooks3353@gmail.com to set up an appointment). The convenience of this type of Counseling/Coaching is the most effective means of Life Coaching for those who live outside of Colorado. Give Dr. Mike a call! You’ll be glad you did!

Tis the Season of Divorce (2) By Dr. Michael Brooks

Spending time together with your spouse is number two on the list. During the spring through early fall, families get real busy with work, school, and sports. The kids keep you busy, and there is no time for you and your spouse. You have deadlines to meet at work, kids events like summer sports camps, running kids to and from school. They have plays and events at school that you attend during the week. Kids are involved with soccer, baseball, softball, gymnastics, so you never get time to spend with your spouse. When the holidays hit you, they often lead to lots of downtimes for you and your spouse.

Usually, there are no school activities during holiday breaks, and you and your spouse are not working, and you have the kids home. Then the kids get into fights, and you become a referee by yourself and no help from your spouse!! Something clicks in your brain, and you realize you’re not sure if you like the person you’re looking at: (your spouse). You think to yourself; you really haven’t spent any time with them during the course of the year. They seem to argue at silly things; sometimes your spouse will decide to take off to the mall, or spend time on their social media all day and avoid spending time with you. You get irritated and start thinking about being alone for the holidays. You don’t like the way you’re being treated or the way you’ve been avoided. You start to complain, and your spouse gets upset because you’re being selfish and demanding of their time. An argument pursues, and you stomp off to the guest bedroom and sulk.

I see this all the time and hear about it during counseling sessions. I’d suggest that you plan some time together on a date night and have some fun. You need to reconnect with your spouse at some level. Talk about a vacation that you both want and plan it, so you have something to look forward too. I suggest that when the kids go to bed, watch a movie together, or sit on the sofa and just have a heart to heart talk about life and what you want to do together in the future. This will help both of you to restore the communication you both need and want due to the busyness of your family.

Here are my tips for reconnecting with your spouse.

• Plan a movie night out with dinner
• Do something fun that you both like to do, walks, talks, cooking dinner together.
• Have a family game night and enjoy having fun with your children
• Find someone to watch the kids and take your spouse shopping
• Plan your next vacation over dinner, no kids
• Go to an art museum, go to a play

These are just a few suggestions for an adult adventure or a night out. I think this will bring back some of the excitement you had when you began to date. Plus it’s fun and offers some much-needed laughter.

Next week, I will be writing about the issues of work being brought home during the holidays. Not a good idea if you want peace and harmony.There will be Mike’s tips to help you through the temptation of doing work while with family during the holidays.

Do you dread the holidays, the family fights, the arguments? Are you considering a divorce because of the in-laws are making your life miserable? Do you need to be able to express that you don’t want to go to your in-laws and want the peace of staying home? Does your communication with your spouse, children need help? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you need contact Dr. Mike and set up an appointment. Don’t allow loneliness to control the new experiences that you can enjoy today.

Please call Dr. Mike at 303.880.9878. He can help you. He has helped several people going through tough times of loneliness.

Dr. Michael Brooks is the founder of Applicable Counseling and life coaching Services. It is affordable, accessible, anonymous and available by appointment from the privacy of your home. To avoid travel time and the comfort of home, many clients prefer to meet with Dr. Mike over the phone or via Skype (if you want to Skype with Dr. Mike send him an email at mbrooks3353@gmail.com to set up an appointment). The convenience of this type of Counseling/Coaching is the most effective means of Life Coaching for those who live outside of Colorado. Give Dr. Mike a call! You’ll be glad you did!

If You’re Considering Divorce (5)

By Dr. Michael Brooks

For those of you who took the quiz, was it a wake-up call for you? Take the time and read what the results are. You may be surprised by the results. What is so important about each of the warning signs in the quiz? Here’s some explanation of each of the items in the quiz to help you figure out where you’re at in your relationship.

Before you divorce, look at ways of saving your relationship.

#1. Couples need to play together to stay together. Part of staying in love is to do things together emotionally and physically. Too much down time from each other is unhealthy and unwise. Spending time with each other promotes togetherness and communication. In my humble opinion, lack of communication today is one of the main reasons for divorces. If you have to find fulfillment from other sources and not from your spouse/partner you should look at this as a warning sign, danger ahead for your relationship. You need to find activities that include doing things together. If for example you like bowling and your spouse hates it and you insist that they do this with you, this will lead to the corrosion of your relationship. Find things that you did as a couple when you first started dating. Rekindle the romance with fun things. If you want to connect with your spouse, talk, communicate, listen to what they have to say, get involved with their life. Want to revive the connection with the one you love? Start doing things that bring laughter and joy to both of you.

When you can’t spend quality time together, this will lead to an unhealthy attitude towards your spouse. Some of the complaints that I get from a spouse who is falling out of love are: He spends too much time at the gym, is at work too long or brings their work home with them and I feel there is no time for me. To make a healthy connection, you need to see each other, hear each other, touch each other each and every day!

#2. What are your Priorities:  When you drift apart you can drift towards things that are unhealthy in your relationship. Do you really want a relationship with your spouse? Are you more interested in being with your friends? Do you find excuses to leave and avoid being with that one you promised to love always? If you find yourself in finding ways to avoid being with your spouse and fill that void with friends and or events, then your priorities are really out of kilter. 3.

#3. You find Sexual interests elsewhere by flirting or thinking of someone else. When some couples grow apart, they start thinking about the opposite sex in unhealthy ways that could tear apart a marriage.The further you grow apart from your spouse, you may want to find someone else! General flirting is a warning sign of falling out of love with your spouse. Some people start looking at porn sites and at dating sites to fulfill the need finding an alternative spouse. This is a growing problem for many couples.

Do you suspect that you’re falling out of love with your spouse? Do you feel like your relationship is drifting apart? Has the lack of love in your relationship caused your spouse/partner to cheat on you by using Facebook or Classmates.com? Have you seen the signs of them spending time texting excessively or on the computer? Do you need help in confronting your spouse/partners suspicious behavior? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you need to contact Dr. Mike and set up an appointment. Don’t allow an old love to destroy your relationship. If your marriage has been threatened by or has ended because of a social media affair and you need someone to talk to, or need help in overcoming the pain you’re going through, please call Dr. Mike at 303.880.9878. He can help you. He has helped several people through the process of a broken relationship caused by social media infidelity.

Dr. Michael Brooks is the founder of Applicable Counseling and life coaching Services. It is affordable, accessible, anonymous and available by appointment from the privacy of your home. To avoid travel time and the comfort of home, many clients prefer to meet with Dr. Mike over the phone or via Skype (if you want to Skype with Dr. Mike send him an email at mbrooks3353@gmail.com to set up an appointment). The convenience of this type of Counseling/Coaching is the most effective means of Life Coaching for those who live outside of Colorado. Give Dr. Mike a call! You’ll be glad you did!

The Day you Decide to Divorce (4) By Dr. Michael Brooks

The day you decide to divorce there will be many things you have to consider. Who will your divorce effect? If you have children, they will be the most challenged in your immediate family circle. Your family, parents, brothers, and sisters, grandparents, aunts, and uncles, for the most part, will take this hard. I think it best that you have a game plan on how to share the news with your family and close friends. Consider those in the family that you trust to share with them your views and insights on your divorce. If you have a known gossip in the family and you know that they will add their personal insights to your private business and share it with others, do not share with them. They will be a problem for you in keeping sensitive information private.

Unhappy couple arguing about a possible divorce

Have a plan on how to talk with your spouse. You need to let them know why you have chosen to take this route and your next steps. Be forthcoming in your reasons and don’t sugar coat your reasons. Be upfront and truthful for obvious reasons. This will be difficult enough when you sit down and share the reasons why you want a divorce. Listen patiently and don’t get angry or upset when they challenge you. Not everyone will sit back and say something like “hey, that’s a great idea let’s get divorced and as soon as possible.” Most likely this will not happen.

Here are some things that your spouse may say that doesn’t want a divorce from you;

• How long have you been thinking of wanting to divorce and why?
• Let’s get counseling/coaching so that we can save our marriage
• What about our children they need both of us in the same house
• Oh you have said this in the past, I know you don’t really mean it
• Please give this one more try, I’ll do better in our marriage
• No, I will not sign any papers giving you a divorce
• We can’t financially do a divorce, forget it
• You’ll get over this, you always do
• I’ll kill myself you just wait and see
• I’ll do anything you want me to do, anything to not get divorced

There will be many reasons why someone who doesn’t want a divorce will fight it. Making promises to change behaviors that they can’t possibly keep. Hearing these pleadings can be heartbreaking. That’s why if you can save your marriage, and get help in deciding what is right for you then just do it.

Ask yourself these questions; am I filing because I’m angry and doing it out of spite? Have I thought through all my options of trying to save the marriage before I file? What are the real reasons I’m filing? Have I tried marriage counseling/coaching with my spouse? If you have answered yes to any of these questions, then give Dr. Mike a call he can help with this difficult process of deciding on your next steps and what to do. Call him at 303.880.9878

Dr. Michael Brooks is the founder of Applicable Counseling and life coaching Services. It is affordable, accessible, anonymous and available by appointment from the privacy of your home. To avoid travel time and the comfort of home, many clients prefer to meet with Dr. Mike over the phone or via Skype (if you want to Skype with Dr. Mike send him an email at mbrooks3353@gmail.com to set up an appointment). The convenience of this type of Counseling/Coaching is the most effective means of Life Coaching for those who live outside of Colorado. Give Dr. Mike a call! You’ll be glad you did! You can call him at 303.880.9878