but, whether gay, straight, trans or any other combination, when two people come together to date or to get serious, they face the same highs and lows that surface in any relationship. ditto for later on when you start to dig deeper into issues like building trust, managing expectations, tackling insecurities, navigating communication styles, and even dealing with exes who might be friends or parents of your children. isolation, including being rejected by family members, friends or co-workers, deciding who …

discussing a problem or impasse in your house is not a formal legal proceeding, and it’s not about ‘proving’ to some invisible judge that you’re right and your partner is wrong. even if you want to rush to defend yourself, do the opposite:  attempt to meet them in a place of collaborative discussion and healing. what about this is upsetting you?’  rather than engage in defensiveness, try to focus on just neutral exploration of your partner’s feelings to understand them …

at first you think it’s because people are offended, but then you clock that they’re sensing something is different and are just checking to see what it is. oddly, the most awkward moments in your first gay relationship are when people go out of the way to show how proud they are of you holding hands. when are you more likely to hear “you guys look so cute together”? or ask you directly in a serious news interviewee voice whether …

“a lot of gay couples have learned to take the judgments of others in stride and to move forward,” says chris armstrong, a certified relationship coach in the washington d.c. area. “many of those open relationships are very successful and something that heterosexual couples have a harder time pulling off.” “for many of these couples, they are more honest with their families and friends and work colleagues than they have been in the past, because coming out has been a …

based on a combination of academic research and the real world experiences of my lgbtq therapy clients in long term gay relationships, the following are six practices that can enhance and maintain relationships over a lifetime: the greet: dogs are the acclaimed experts of this practice. with their entire bodies they demonstrate they are grateful that you are a part of their lives. you don’t necessarily have to wag your tail when your partner comes home, but initiating some kind …