Simone Scully

There’s no way around it: Breakups are hard, whether you end the relationship or someone else does. In many ways, the ending of a relationship can feel similar to a death. After all, you’re losing the closeness you had with someone very important to…

Guilt-tripping is common in relationships. While it can sometimes help get what you want, like your partner to change their mind, it can do more harm than good long term. Picture this: Your partner asks you to wash the dishes tonight, and you really…

Being vulnerable in a relationship means taking a risk. There’s a chance of getting hurt, but there’s also a chance for connection and growth. Opening up to someone isn’t always an easy thing to do. We may fear that if someone knows our biggest…

Taking a break can actually be a good thing in a relationship. It all depends on how you use that time apart. In 1997, the line “we were on a break” became famous almost overnight from the hit sitcom “Friends” — and it’s still a very popular meme…

If you’ve ever been in the middle of a discussion (read: argument) with your partner and heard the exasperated phrase “Just listen to me,” chances are you were definitely not practicing active listening at the moment. We've all been there! But that’s…

Ultimatums can have big effects on your relationship. Here’s how they can happen — and what to do if you get one. When you’re in a relationship, you may find yourself having the same disagreement or argument over and over again. And those arguments…

Loneliness has increased during the pandemic, but it’s never too late to make friends. Here are our tips for making friends during COVID-19. When you were young, it’s possible making friends felt easier. All it took was a fun game, a shared interest,…

Co-parenting with someone who shows narcissistic traits is tough — but there are ways to cope. Here are some tips. Co-parenting, which is a shared parenting arrangement by two people who aren’t in a relationship and are living apart, can be…

Our phones kept a detailed track of in-quarantine data: our experiences, our “history.” It was our lifeline to the world outside. So, how can we detach ourselves? We strive to share insights based on diverse experiences without stigma or shame. This…

“Just wait until you have kids…” For years, I’d cringe when I heard those words. The very idea that you had to change after having kids bothered me. I found it insulting, demeaning, outdated, and even a little sexist. It conjured images of the 1950s…

Whether it’s a family member, a co-worker, or a stranger, chances are that you’ve had someone say something hurtful to you. Here’s how to deal with it. How many times have you been having a perfectly uncontroversial conversation with someone when…

If you’re in a relationship where you always put the other person’s needs first, you might be in an enmeshed relationship. But it’s possible to break old habits and set healthy boundaries. Having a close family or a close relationship with your…

When things seem to be going wrong in your relationship, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed and alone. Arguments with your significant other can become repetitive and cyclical — and it’s hard to know how to break out of unhealthy patterns, even when you…

When I decided to go to therapy for the first time, I spent the whole car ride thinking about how ready I was to work on myself. But when I got there and actually sat down on my therapist’s couch, I clammed up. Suddenly, while sitting face-to-face…

The vindictive character. The revenge plan. The lack of remorse and empathy. This is how narcissistic personality disorder is often and inaccurately portrayed in pop culture. A highly stigmatized and misunderstood condition, narcissistic personality…

There’s a common refrain in my house when my husband and I have an argument: “I’m so sick of having the same argument with you.” We’ve been together almost 12 years, (married for more than 5) and yet, we still fight over the same tired things: whose…

We include products we think are useful for our readers. If you buy through links on this page, we may earn a small commission. Here’s our process. Sex when you’re pregnant can be a great thing (as long as your doctor hasn’t told you not to, that…

Just Because You Want Them to Be Perfect, Doesn’t Mean They Are The early days of a relationship can be nerve-wracking: You worry about what to wear, where to take them on a date, and if you’ll say the wrong thing and make them not like you. And then…

Five Ways to Tell That You May Be Dating “The One” So you’ve met someone. You’ve had a few dates. Now, you can’t stop thinking about them. You definitely can’t wait to see them again. Maybe this is even the first time you’ve ever felt this excited…

Dismissing Too Many Red Flags Can Be Trouble We all think that we’ll be able to recognize a “bad” or “toxic” relationship… until we’re in one. Because that’s the thing about unhealthy relationships: they never start bad. If they did, we wouldn’t be…