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The Best Relationship Advice That Everyone Needs to Hear (From the World’s #1 Love Researchers) — Transcript

by Mel Robbins · 12,798 words · 2,062 segments · language en · Watch on YouTube

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  1. 0:00Today, you and I are here with Dr. Julie
  2. 0:02and Dr. John Gottman. They are the
  3. 0:04world's leading experts on love and what
  4. 0:07[music] it takes to make a relationship
  5. 0:09work.
  6. 0:09>> We had couples talk about a conflict
  7. 0:11issue for 15 minutes. [music] We could
  8. 0:13predict with almost 90% accuracy whether
  9. 0:17they would divorce or stay together and
  10. 0:19if they stayed together, how [music]
  11. 0:21happily married or unhappily married
  12. 0:23they would be.
  13. 0:24>> Wow. They're teaching you [music] and me
  14. 0:26everything we need to know about the
  15. 0:28four things that'll blow up your
  16. 0:29relationships and what you can do to
  17. 0:32break these [music] patterns of
  18. 0:34conflict. So the first one is criticism.
  19. 0:38Criticism means [music]
  20. 0:39blaming a problem on a personality flaw
  21. 0:43of your partner. Secondly is contempt.
  22. 0:47And contempt [music] is the worst one we
  23. 0:50have. You're coming from a place of
  24. 0:52superiority. looking down your nose at
  25. 0:56your partner. The third horseman is
  26. 0:59defensiveness. And then there's
  27. 1:02>> How do you tell someone that [music]
  28. 1:04it's not that you're worried about them,
  29. 1:05it's that you're losing interest in
  30. 1:07them?
  31. 1:07>> No.
  32. 1:08>> I love you so so so much.
  33. 1:11>> That's nice to hear.
  34. 1:13>> But
  35. 1:13>> Oh, there's a butt. [laughter]
  36. 1:15>> I'm sorry I'm laughing, but I You two
  37. 1:17are adorable. And we have all been in a
  38. 1:20relationship like that. Within 3 minutes
  39. 1:23flat, [music] you can predict whether a
  40. 1:25couple is going to break up or still be
  41. 1:26together in 6 years. What are you
  42. 1:28looking for?
  43. 1:28>> If I was going to boil it down to one
  44. 1:30[music] thing.
  45. 1:32>> Hey, it's Mel. I am so excited about
  46. 1:34this episode. I know it's coming. It is
  47. 1:37extraordinary. You're going to love
  48. 1:38this. But one thing that my team just
  49. 1:40showed me that I don't love so much, 51%
  50. 1:43of you who watch here on YouTube, you're
  51. 1:45not subscribers. So, here's my request.
  52. 1:48Our goal as a team is to get that number
  53. 1:50to 40%. If the subscribe button is lit
  54. 1:52up, would you please just hit subscribe?
  55. 1:54It's free. It's the best way to say,
  56. 1:56"Hey, thanks everybody. Thanks for
  57. 1:57putting out free content here on YouTube
  58. 1:59for me. Thanks for all the worldrenowned
  59. 2:01experts that are helping me improve my
  60. 2:02life." I appreciate you doing that. And
  61. 2:05that way you also won't miss a thing.
  62. 2:06Thank you for doing that for us. We love
  63. 2:09you and you're going to love this
  64. 2:11episode. So, let's jump into it. Please
  65. 2:13help me welcome the extraordinary Dr.
  66. 2:16John and Dr. Julie Godman to the Mel
  67. 2:18Robbins podcast. No, we're so happy to
  68. 2:21be here, Mel. Thank you.
  69. 2:22>> Oh, honor is mine. Honor is mine. You
  70. 2:26know, I would love to have you start by
  71. 2:29just thinking about the thousands of
  72. 2:32couples that you have researched and
  73. 2:35this extraordinary body of work that
  74. 2:39spans 50 years. and speak to the person
  75. 2:43who is listening right now and share
  76. 2:46what might change about their
  77. 2:48relationships
  78. 2:50if they really take to heart all of this
  79. 2:52research and wisdom and they apply it as
  80. 2:55soon as they're done listening.
  81. 2:57>> Beautiful. You know, I think uh two
  82. 3:00things I would say that really change.
  83. 3:04One is that hopefully conflict, which is
  84. 3:08absolutely normal in every relationship,
  85. 3:11becomes more calm, more gentle, and more
  86. 3:14constructive, also [snorts] more
  87. 3:17compassionate. Because the real theme of
  88. 3:22conflict is to understand your partner
  89. 3:25better. It's not to tear your partner
  90. 3:27down. [snorts] It's to really get inside
  91. 3:30their world and understand where they're
  92. 3:33coming from. So hopefully that might
  93. 3:37take place after listening to your
  94. 3:41beautiful show. And I would say
  95. 3:44secondly,
  96. 3:45maybe they do more to express gratitude.
  97. 3:49Maybe they ask more questions of their
  98. 3:51partner to really understand where their
  99. 3:54partner is at here and now internally.
  100. 3:58They may have known them when they were
  101. 4:00first dating, knew that world, but
  102. 4:03people evolve and change. So, who are
  103. 4:06they now? Asking questions draws that
  104. 4:09out. Mhm. Yeah. I would I would say that
  105. 4:13um in all the 54 years of of studying
  106. 4:17couples and my friend Bob Levenson and I
  107. 4:21started this research way back then and
  108. 4:24neither of us had a clue about what
  109. 4:26makes relationships work. We went from
  110. 4:28one disaster to another. And if I was
  111. 4:31going to boil it down to one thing, I
  112. 4:33have this invention that I keep in my
  113. 4:36back pocket and it's a little notebook
  114. 4:40and I keep it there all the time. And if
  115. 4:44Julie utters the four terrifying words,
  116. 4:49we need to talk. I get out my notebook
  117. 4:52very slowly so I can delay my reaction.
  118. 4:56I get out my pen very slowly and I open
  119. 5:00the book up very slowly and and then I
  120. 5:04say, "Okay, baby, talk to me. What's on
  121. 5:08your mind? What's on your heart?" And I
  122. 5:10write down what she's saying. And the
  123. 5:14more defensive I feel, the more I take
  124. 5:17notes and slow her down. Because I think
  125. 5:20the one thing we've discovered is that
  126. 5:22the masters of relationships, the ones
  127. 5:25who are happy and stay together,
  128. 5:27really seem to have a model that when
  129. 5:31your partner's upset about anything, the
  130. 5:34world stops and you listen. And this is
  131. 5:37my way of listening, taking notes, and
  132. 5:41doing it very slowly so I can calm down
  133. 5:44and not react quickly by saying
  134. 5:47something I' I'll regret later
  135. 5:49[laughter] on.
  136. 5:51>> I want to just pause.
  137. 5:52>> Okay, that's okay.
  138. 5:54>> You know what's adorable about you two,
  139. 5:56and if you're listening, I'm just going
  140. 5:59to describe it. If you're watching this
  141. 6:01episode, you will have already seen it.
  142. 6:04Is that you both keep turning toward one
  143. 6:08another and smiling
  144. 6:12and you have this very
  145. 6:15warm,
  146. 6:17loving gaze at one another as the other
  147. 6:20is talking.
  148. 6:21>> How can you not love [laughter] this?
  149. 6:23This is beautiful.
  150. 6:25And you also are like holding hands and
  151. 6:27there's a there's a physical touch
  152. 6:29connection. Oh yeah.
  153. 6:30>> Which is extremely noticeable
  154. 6:33>> because you don't see it all that often
  155. 6:36in couples. And I wanted to just
  156. 6:39>> unpack
  157. 6:41the genius of your response, Dr.
  158. 6:44Gottman, to those four terrifying words,
  159. 6:47we need to talk.
  160. 6:49>> Right. Um, which I'm also realizing
  161. 6:53sometimes I don't give Chris the grace
  162. 6:55of preparing him for the fact that I'm
  163. 6:58about to blast at him like a volcano.
  164. 7:01[laughter]
  165. 7:01But what I loved because I do think
  166. 7:05there is something very intentional
  167. 7:08about what you just described
  168. 7:11that as you're imagining Dr. gotman and
  169. 7:14he leaned forward and he reached into
  170. 7:16his back pocket and he pulled out a a
  171. 7:19notebook that's like the size of a 3x5
  172. 7:22card, right?
  173. 7:23>> And or you opened it up slowly and then
  174. 7:26you said you started to write
  175. 7:29>> and that is your way of listening. But
  176. 7:32it's so important to also point out as
  177. 7:35you're as you're hearing this that you
  178. 7:38are also managing your reaction
  179. 7:41>> exactly
  180. 7:42>> in the middle of what could become an
  181. 7:44argument or conflict.
  182. 7:45>> Yeah. Delay is the way of engaging the
  183. 7:49frontal loes instead of reacting direct
  184. 7:52from your amygdala you know which is
  185. 7:55terror right and defensiveness comes
  186. 7:57out. So when you engage the brain uh the
  187. 8:01thinking brain then you can be a little
  188. 8:04little less defensive.
  189. 8:05>> Yeah. Let me add that you can be uh less
  190. 8:09physiologically aroused. You know, one
  191. 8:11of the things that we found in our
  192. 8:13research is that often times people can
  193. 8:16be sitting as calmly as John and I are
  194. 8:19right now having a conflict, but one of
  195. 8:22their heart rates will be over a 100
  196. 8:25beats a minute and they've gone into
  197. 8:27fight or flight, which means blood has
  198. 8:31left this preffrontal cortex, moved back
  199. 8:34into the motor cortex. They cannot think
  200. 8:37clearly, listen clearly.
  201. 8:41problem solve and be creative. It's
  202. 8:43impossible because this is offline.
  203. 8:46>> So by John pulling out that notebook
  204. 8:50very slowly, there's a couple of ways
  205. 8:54it's wonderful. For one, it keeps you
  206. 8:57calm. It keeps you more more focused on
  207. 9:01>> kind of the cognitive element Yeah. of
  208. 9:04what I'm saying as opposed to [gasps]
  209. 9:08did he did she really say that or or for
  210. 9:13me what it tells me is that gosh he's
  211. 9:16going to take me seriously
  212. 9:19>> right he's not going to be thinking
  213. 9:21about okay when do I get the oil changed
  214. 9:24in the car I can tell that he's
  215. 9:27listening because he is taking notes and
  216. 9:30that's meaningful for me it helps me to
  217. 9:33feel his presence and it's a wonderful
  218. 9:36thing for all of you to do as well.
  219. 9:39>> I love that. And I I could imagine Dr.
  220. 9:42Gottman reaching Hold on, let me get my
  221. 9:44notebook [laughter] out of my pocket
  222. 9:46here. Um, you study love in a lab. What
  223. 9:51does that mean for the person that's not
  224. 9:53familiar with your groundbreaking
  225. 9:56foundational research on relationships?
  226. 9:59What do you do?
  227. 10:00>> Yeah. So, um, Julie and I, uh, after we
  228. 10:04first met, you know, we designed this
  229. 10:07apartment where 130 newlywed couples
  230. 10:11just a couple of months after the
  231. 10:12wedding would spend 24 hours, cameras
  232. 10:15rolling, no instructions, you know, they
  233. 10:18have an opportunity to eat together,
  234. 10:23clean up together, you know, read the
  235. 10:25newspaper, watch TV, whatever they want
  236. 10:28to do. And the cameras are just rolling.
  237. 10:30And while they're walking around, we're
  238. 10:33measuring their heart rate. They're
  239. 10:34measuring all kinds of physiological
  240. 10:36measures. Every time they urinate, we
  241. 10:38take a blood we take a sample and
  242. 10:40measure stress hormones. And then we
  243. 10:43take blood from them the next day and
  244. 10:45and look at the immune system and stress
  245. 10:48hormones and immune system. So, we're
  246. 10:50just kind of watching couples. And it
  247. 10:53turns out that we can predict the future
  248. 10:55of the relationship six years later from
  249. 10:58the way they interacted in that
  250. 11:00apartment lab.
  251. 11:01>> So the prediction is really 94% accurate
  252. 11:06>> at predicting the future.
  253. 11:08>> So you could predict with 94% accuracy
  254. 11:10who was going to make it and who wasn't.
  255. 11:12>> That's right.
  256. 11:13>> This is like the original reality TV. It
  257. 11:16sounds like you guys invented the
  258. 11:17format.
  259. 11:18>> That's right. Let me add also that this
  260. 11:21brilliant man over here created a
  261. 11:24fantastic
  262. 11:26system for codifying emotions. That
  263. 11:29means looking at the face, looking at
  264. 11:32the movements of the body, looking at
  265. 11:34the words, the tone of voice, the eye
  266. 11:37gaze and assessing from that what
  267. 11:41emotion is that individual feeling when
  268. 11:44they speak. Then what's the other
  269. 11:47individual going to respond with? What
  270. 11:49kind of feeling is that? So we call that
  271. 11:52spaf specific affect which means emotion
  272. 11:55specific affect coding.
  273. 11:58And that in itself tells us a huge
  274. 12:02amount about the dynamic. Who's being
  275. 12:06belligerent? Who's being doineering? Who
  276. 12:09is being subordinate?
  277. 12:11Who's being kind? who's trying to make a
  278. 12:15repair if they said the wrong thing so
  279. 12:20that the other person doesn't get their
  280. 12:21feelings hurt
  281. 12:22>> or using humor as a way to wind things
  282. 12:25down. Humor turns out to be very
  283. 12:27important,
  284. 12:28>> right? Why is how we handle conflict so
  285. 12:32important in a relationship?
  286. 12:34>> Because we fight all the time.
  287. 12:36[laughter]
  288. 12:37We are human beings. You know, one of
  289. 12:40the things, Mel, that I have really
  290. 12:42tried to understand since I was a kid is
  291. 12:46how come people are mean to each other?
  292. 12:49>> Why is that? What's evil? What does that
  293. 12:51even mean?
  294. 12:53>> What I've really understood from lots of
  295. 12:56archaeological reading and so on is that
  296. 13:00people have aggression. They've also got
  297. 13:03altruism. They can be very, very kind.
  298. 13:06But all of us have those aggressive
  299. 13:08instincts inside of us. [snorts] So what
  300. 13:11happens with it? Typically it goes to
  301. 13:15the person that's closest to us because
  302. 13:20that person we assume is not going to
  303. 13:22abandon us, is not going to run away.
  304. 13:26They're going to be there to listen to
  305. 13:28us. And so we have personality
  306. 13:32differences from our partner, lifestyle
  307. 13:35preference differences from our partner.
  308. 13:39Everybody has those. And 69%
  309. 13:44of the issues couples struggle with are
  310. 13:46perpetual conflicts. They never ever go
  311. 13:50away.
  312. 13:50>> That was a big surprise to us.
  313. 13:52>> Yeah. So they just keep coming up,
  314. 13:55right, over and over and over again in
  315. 13:57some different format through the side
  316. 13:59door. So what do you do with that? Well,
  317. 14:04people can avoid those, sweep them under
  318. 14:07the rug, but you know, they don't have
  319. 14:10conflict, but they grow more distant
  320. 14:12typically over time. Or they can learn
  321. 14:16to really talk in a way that's calm,
  322. 14:20little bit of emotion, maybe a little
  323. 14:23more intellectual, you know, trying to
  324. 14:25solve the problem very fast. We call
  325. 14:28those validators. And then there's me.
  326. 14:31I'm a volatile like maybe you are. And
  327. 14:35we love to explode. We love to be
  328. 14:39passionate about expressing our
  329. 14:42emotions. and I'm a conflict avoider.
  330. 14:44>> It's a great combo. So,
  331. 14:47>> we figured it out over time.
  332. 14:50>> Um, we're going to get into these
  333. 14:52different types,
  334. 14:54>> but before we do, I want to just talk a
  335. 14:57little bit about the research because
  336. 14:58it's so fascinating.
  337. 15:00>> Sure. Um, you've already mentioned that
  338. 15:02by observing a couple in this apartment
  339. 15:06love lab, you could predict with 94%
  340. 15:10accuracy,
  341. 15:10>> right,
  342. 15:11>> whether or not they were going to be
  343. 15:12together in 6 years.
  344. 15:13>> That's correct.
  345. 15:14>> And we're going to get into what you
  346. 15:16were looking at that really was the
  347. 15:19signal that they're not going to make
  348. 15:20it. But there's also interesting
  349. 15:23research that you have around how the
  350. 15:25first three minutes of a fight predict
  351. 15:29everything,
  352. 15:30>> right?
  353. 15:31>> Let's hear about that.
  354. 15:32>> You know, Bob and I found that um that
  355. 15:35if we we had couples talk about a
  356. 15:37conflict issue for 15 minutes, we could
  357. 15:40predict with almost 90% accuracy whether
  358. 15:44they would divorce or stay together. And
  359. 15:46if they stayed together, how happily
  360. 15:48married or unhappily married they would
  361. 15:50be. But then somebody in my lab, civil
  362. 15:53career, said, "What if we lop off the
  363. 15:56data from the last 3 minutes and we only
  364. 15:58have 12 minutes? What's the prediction
  365. 16:00like with only 12 minutes of data?" And
  366. 16:03it was just fine. And she said, "Well,
  367. 16:06let's lop off another 3 minutes." And it
  368. 16:09was just fine. She got down to the first
  369. 16:12three minutes and we were still
  370. 16:14predicting the future of the
  371. 16:16relationship very accurately by just
  372. 16:18looking at that first three minutes
  373. 16:21because couples who really are going to
  374. 16:25wind up divorced or together unhappily
  375. 16:28start off the conversation really
  376. 16:30differently from couples who are we call
  377. 16:33the masters of relationship. That
  378. 16:35beginning is so important.
  379. 16:37Now I'm like, "Okay, well, what's the
  380. 16:39beginning that predicts divorce and
  381. 16:41breakup
  382. 16:42>> versus the beginning that doesn't?"
  383. 16:45>> I have an idea. Let's role play it.
  384. 16:46>> Let's do it.
  385. 16:47>> Let's role play it.
  386. 16:48>> Sure.
  387. 16:48>> All right. So, this is predictive of
  388. 16:51going down. [laughter]
  389. 16:53>> Yeah. Well, so I I wanted to talk to you
  390. 16:55about this. I really think that you're
  391. 16:57you're really ruining this marriage and
  392. 17:00it's it's it's your responsibility
  393. 17:02because you're being so obsessive
  394. 17:06compulsively looking at Let me finish.
  395. 17:09>> I'm not going to let you finish. You're
  396. 17:10such a slob that you know I can't even
  397. 17:14walk through the room.
  398. 17:16>> I am charmingly uh sloppy. But you are
  399. 17:20really a nut. I mean you're you need
  400. 17:23therapy. You really do. I mean,
  401. 17:26everything has to be perfect for you.
  402. 17:28Everything's got to be perfect.
  403. 17:30>> Well, that's right. And I need just to
  404. 17:32live with you.
  405. 17:33>> I don't even want to talk about this
  406. 17:34anymore.
  407. 17:35>> All right.
  408. 17:38>> I feel like I now know what it's like to
  409. 17:41be a marriage therapist watching
  410. 17:43[laughter] the two of you.
  411. 17:44>> You ain't seen nothing.
  412. 17:46>> That could be worse. I once had somebody
  413. 17:49who was so upset, so flooded, and she
  414. 17:54was all of about 4'10
  415. 17:56and her husband was 6'5 and had cheated
  416. 17:59on her, etc. So, I tried to calm her
  417. 18:03down. She finally sat down on the couch
  418. 18:07and my couch was a beautiful red
  419. 18:10leather, gorgeous couch. When she left,
  420. 18:13there were scratch marks on the couch.
  421. 18:16Wow. that that
  422. 18:18>> I bet her heart rate was up. I bet it
  423. 18:20was. So, unpack what was happening
  424. 18:23>> in that because I think that we've all
  425. 18:27experienced those kinds of fights,
  426. 18:29whether it's about the relationship or
  427. 18:30now you're arguing about, well, you're
  428. 18:32you're you're giving the kid too much
  429. 18:34money and d and you're overparenting and
  430. 18:37like, you know, aiming it like what was
  431. 18:39happening in that fight you just had. So
  432. 18:42I was describing the problem in terms of
  433. 18:46her personality being deficient
  434. 18:49>> that there was something wrong with her.
  435. 18:51It was all her fault.
  436. 18:52>> So you you you
  437. 18:56that's all he was saying. And of course
  438. 18:59I got defensive and I counterattacked.
  439. 19:02That's a classic form of defensiveness.
  440. 19:04You counterattack, right? [snorts]
  441. 19:06>> So then I moved into you, you you you.
  442. 19:10And it was all about character flaws.
  443. 19:14>> He's a slob.
  444. 19:16>> That's right.
  445. 19:16>> And all I'm doing is trying to give her
  446. 19:18feedback about what's wrong with her so
  447. 19:20she can improve cuz I'm pretty much
  448. 19:22perfect as far as I can tell.
  449. 19:24>> See this? It's a halo. It's a halo.
  450. 19:26[laughter]
  451. 19:26>> It's not a yamaka. It's a halo that God
  452. 19:29gave me. So I'm always innocent and it's
  453. 19:31always her fault. [laughter]
  454. 19:34>> That's the way the disasters argue.
  455. 19:36>> And notice, did you see any listening
  456. 19:39there?
  457. 19:40No, zero listening. Zero.
  458. 19:43>> That's right. So, people were talking
  459. 19:45over each other and immediately coming
  460. 19:49up with their rebuke before even hearing
  461. 19:52the last words of their sentence and the
  462. 19:55partner.
  463. 19:56>> Right away, persuasion enters.
  464. 19:59>> I'm trying to persuade her that I'm
  465. 20:01right and she's wrong, you know, and I
  466. 20:04haven't even listened to what what her
  467. 20:06concerns are. Right. The other thing
  468. 20:08that happened is the volume,
  469. 20:11>> right,
  470. 20:12>> started getting higher and higher and
  471. 20:15higher, right? Right.
  472. 20:16>> Because neither one of you were
  473. 20:18listening and you're both blaming and
  474. 20:20now you're trying to talk over one
  475. 20:22another and then you both went like,
  476. 20:25>> and if I'm if I'm physiologically
  477. 20:27flooded,
  478. 20:29>> I think all I need to do is repeat
  479. 20:31myself louder in order to be more
  480. 20:34persuasive. That's the way I reason when
  481. 20:37I'm flooded.
  482. 20:38>> 63 times later. Have I listened?
  483. 20:41[laughter]
  484. 20:42No.
  485. 20:44What does a positive
  486. 20:47argument look like?
  487. 20:49>> Okay. Let's Let's role model that. We
  488. 20:51can use the same top.
  489. 20:52>> Okay. Yeah.
  490. 20:53>> Okay. So,
  491. 20:55>> what's going on, honey?
  492. 20:56>> Well, I'm I'm I'm kind of thinking that
  493. 20:58um I can't do anything right. You know,
  494. 21:01I I've tried I've tried, you know, being
  495. 21:04neater, more tidy, cleaning things up,
  496. 21:07and you know, it's never good enough for
  497. 21:09you. It feels like that, you know, like
  498. 21:10like I can't satisfy you. It's just like
  499. 21:14I I kind of give up, you know, what am I
  500. 21:17supposed to do to make you happy?
  501. 21:20>> Oh god, that sounds actually like a
  502. 21:22pretty terrible feeling.
  503. 21:24>> Yeah. So, you're really frustrated
  504. 21:27because there's nothing you can do that
  505. 21:30you feel is good enough. Is that right?
  506. 21:32Am I making you feel that way?
  507. 21:34>> Yeah.
  508. 21:34>> Oh, dear. What am I doing that leads to
  509. 21:38you feeling that way? Cuz I don't want
  510. 21:40you to feel that way. I don't want to
  511. 21:42treat you.
  512. 21:42>> Well, you know, like for example, you
  513. 21:44asked me to clean up the kitchen, you
  514. 21:46know, so I I clean it up, you know, and
  515. 21:50it doesn't meet your standards. So, I
  516. 21:52don't even know what your standards are.
  517. 21:54I mean,
  518. 21:54>> do you want me to tell you what they
  519. 21:56are? Probably not.
  520. 21:57>> Well, no, that would help. I really
  521. 21:59would like to know. Yeah.
  522. 22:00>> Oh, god.
  523. 22:01>> Cuz I think I've done it
  524. 22:02>> just fine.
  525. 22:03>> Okay.
  526. 22:04>> And then you're disappointed.
  527. 22:06>> I just don't get it.
  528. 22:08>> I see. Well, I tell you what, what would
  529. 22:11make a huge difference for me, right,
  530. 22:14>> is after washing
  531. 22:16>> Let me Let me write this down.
  532. 22:17>> Okay, that's a great idea. Get out your
  533. 22:20notebook.
  534. 22:21>> Yeah.
  535. 22:23Hang on a minute.
  536. 22:25>> Okay,
  537. 22:26>> let me just breathe a little bit.
  538. 22:28[laughter]
  539. 22:29Okay,
  540. 22:29>> I promise I won't hurt your face.
  541. 22:32>> After after washing the dishes.
  542. 22:34>> Yeah,
  543. 22:35>> it would be wonderful if you would wipe
  544. 22:38down the counters,
  545. 22:40>> you know, just get all those crumbs into
  546. 22:42the sink and then rinse them down the
  547. 22:46sink. That's really all I need, just to
  548. 22:50have counters that are clean. That would
  549. 22:53make a huge difference for me.
  550. 22:55>> Okay.
  551. 22:55>> It would feel great.
  552. 22:57>> You know, I really can't tell when uh
  553. 22:59counter is clean or not cuz it's got,
  554. 23:02you know, you got this pattern of, you
  555. 23:05know,
  556. 23:06Yeah,
  557. 23:07>> this is true. This is why I chose a
  558. 23:11counter with brown in it. It would
  559. 23:14disguise all of your
  560. 23:15>> Just wipe it down really well.
  561. 23:17>> Just wipe it. Yeah, just wipe it. That's
  562. 23:19all you have to do.
  563. 23:20>> All right. All right. I I can do that.
  564. 23:22>> Would you Would you mind doing that?
  565. 23:24>> I'll do that.
  566. 23:25>> Yay.
  567. 23:26>> Oh my god. I love you, too.
  568. 23:28>> Makes sense. [laughter]
  569. 23:29>> I You are adorable.
  570. 23:32>> We're okay.
  571. 23:34>> Can you explain what just happened
  572. 23:37in that
  573. 23:39conflict?
  574. 23:40>> Yeah. Yeah. Easy. So, it started it
  575. 23:45started in a perfect way, which was John
  576. 23:49bringing up that he's feeling bad about
  577. 23:52an interaction of ours.
  578. 23:55>> But notice he's not saying you're a
  579. 23:57schmuck and that's why I feel bad. He's
  580. 24:00saying, I feel like I can't do anything
  581. 24:04right. So, is you in there? No. He is
  582. 24:09having that feeling which pulls on my
  583. 24:13heart. Mel,
  584. 24:14>> he's being vulnerable with me and
  585. 24:17telling me what his feeling is like. And
  586. 24:20that feeling I'm translating into, oh
  587. 24:23god, he's feeling hopeless.
  588. 24:25>> He's feeling despair. I don't want him
  589. 24:28to feel that way. But here's the kicker.
  590. 24:32I want to understand what's making him
  591. 24:35feel that way. So instead of just
  592. 24:38responding
  593. 24:40with, you know, just a comment, I ask a
  594. 24:43question
  595. 24:44>> to try to understand, tell me more. Tell
  596. 24:48me more. Because, you know, it's sort of
  597. 24:51like if something pretty smelly is
  598. 24:54bubbling up from the earth, I want to
  599. 24:58know what's under the earth. you know
  600. 24:59what's going on down there that is
  601. 25:03creating something that feels bad for
  602. 25:05him. So I ask him a question and that
  603. 25:09gives me information about, oh,
  604. 25:13that's what's happening inside. That's
  605. 25:15something that we can change.
  606. 25:18It leads to a solution. I love this
  607. 25:21example and I'm going to tell you why.
  608. 25:24I
  609. 25:26personally know that Chris and I for
  610. 25:29years would have this reoccurring fight.
  611. 25:32And when I'm volcanoing and he's
  612. 25:36turtling, when he pokes his head out of
  613. 25:38the shell to say something, it would
  614. 25:40literally be nothing's ever good enough
  615. 25:42for you.
  616. 25:43>> Yeah.
  617. 25:44>> And I think that's a very common
  618. 25:48like way that people then bark at each
  619. 25:51other. And it's very different to say,
  620. 25:54"Well, nothing's good enough for you. I
  621. 25:55don't even know what to do because it's
  622. 25:56never enough for you."
  623. 25:59>> Versus what you just taught us,
  624. 26:02>> Mhm.
  625. 26:03>> which is instead of accusing nothing,
  626. 26:05it's you,
  627. 26:07>> I feel that no matter what I do, it's
  628. 26:11never enough. And you're right. As soon
  629. 26:14as Chris started saying that to me, I
  630. 26:17immediately feel like a monster. And
  631. 26:19then I want to know, okay, well, what
  632. 26:21what exactly? I'm sorry.
  633. 26:23>> Yeah.
  634. 26:23>> And I can see why this works.
  635. 26:25>> Sure. Right.
  636. 26:25>> Right.
  637. 26:26>> You know, if couples fight the first
  638. 26:28way, yelling at each other, it's never
  639. 26:31enough for you. Fine. Door slams. Go
  640. 26:34into your corners. Is there hope? Sure.
  641. 26:38Of course. You know, the thing is this.
  642. 26:42When in our lab we saw couples who were
  643. 26:45going down the road of distress,
  644. 26:48remember they weren't getting any
  645. 26:50intervention.
  646. 26:51>> They weren't reading anything. They
  647. 26:53weren't listening to fabulous podcasts
  648. 26:56like yours. They weren't trying to learn
  649. 26:59a different manner of relating to one
  650. 27:03another. So without intervention,
  651. 27:05they're falling back on old habits, on
  652. 27:08what they learned at the feet of their
  653. 27:10parents or caretakers, which didn't
  654. 27:13work. So, you know, nobody takes
  655. 27:16relationships 101 in high school. You
  656. 27:19got to learn different ways of talking
  657. 27:22to one another. The Mel Robbins podcast
  658. 27:25is proudly sponsored by AMA Insurance,
  659. 27:28our exclusive auto, home, and life
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  680. 28:26quote today.
  681. 28:28When somebody says to you, "Oh, we never
  682. 28:30fight."
  683. 28:33>> What do you think?
  684. 28:36>> I think they're probably conflict
  685. 28:38avoiders. And I think, oh dear,
  686. 28:42[laughter]
  687. 28:43we've got to help this couple surface,
  688. 28:47unear
  689. 28:49[snorts] the differences, the things
  690. 28:51that are irritating, annoying. Because
  691. 28:54if you hold them inside and you don't
  692. 28:57bring them up, after a while they
  693. 28:59accumulate and then you may end up with
  694. 29:03an eruption, right,
  695. 29:05>> which doesn't help anybody.
  696. 29:07>> One thing that can happen, um, we saw in
  697. 29:11this study that the Sloan Center at UCLA
  698. 29:14did on dual career couples with young
  699. 29:17children, and they spent less than 10%
  700. 29:20of an evening in the same room. They
  701. 29:23talked to each other an average of 35
  702. 29:25minutes a week and mostly what they
  703. 29:28talked about was errands. Who's going to
  704. 29:30do what when. So they they wound up
  705. 29:33really living these parallel lives where
  706. 29:37they ignored the relationship. They
  707. 29:39ignored friendship, intimacy,
  708. 29:42fun, adventure. They were just their
  709. 29:46lives had devolved into this infinite
  710. 29:49to-do list that they did together. But
  711. 29:52that was the only contact they had. So
  712. 29:54they lived life in parallel. You know,
  713. 29:57he he goes to work, she goes to work,
  714. 29:59they come home, they you know, they're
  715. 30:01with the kids, but they're not really
  716. 30:04talking to each other. They're not
  717. 30:05saying, "God, you know, we used to have
  718. 30:08so much fun and we don't have any
  719. 30:09anymore. We're just kind of becoming
  720. 30:11drudges." They don't say that to one
  721. 30:14another.
  722. 30:14>> They say roommates.
  723. 30:16>> They stay roommates. They avoid
  724. 30:18conflict. They avoid saying how lonely
  725. 30:21they are, how unhappy they are, how much
  726. 30:23they miss the way they used to really
  727. 30:26pay attention to the relationship.
  728. 30:27>> If the person listening is thinking,
  729. 30:29"Well, that's me."
  730. 30:30>> Because I can think of periods of Chris
  731. 30:33and my marriage where we have three kids
  732. 30:35who are now all in their 20s,
  733. 30:37>> but when they were little,
  734. 30:39>> that was us.
  735. 30:40>> That was you. We were two ships passing
  736. 30:42in the morning and the night and arguing
  737. 30:44about who didn't go to the grocery store
  738. 30:46and that no matter what I do, it's never
  739. 30:48enough.
  740. 30:49>> Yeah. You have to build in rituals of
  741. 30:51connection in the relationship. build in
  742. 30:54times that you can count on having your
  743. 30:57partner's ears. And you know, we have an
  744. 31:00annual honeymoon that we do. And for 27
  745. 31:03years, we've gone to the same bed and
  746. 31:05breakfast and took took our kayak and we
  747. 31:09spend two weeks asking each other three
  748. 31:12questions. What sucked about last year?
  749. 31:15What did you hate about last year? What
  750. 31:18did you love about last year? And what
  751. 31:20do you want next year to be like?
  752. 31:23So we we have that ritual where we know
  753. 31:26we can connect and it's romantic and
  754. 31:29it's fun and we kayak and you know we
  755. 31:31hike and you know it's always magic. Let
  756. 31:35me point out though what John is talking
  757. 31:37about especially for really busy two
  758. 31:41career couples
  759. 31:42>> are those rituals of connection but they
  760. 31:45don't have to be great big uh you know
  761. 31:49broadcasts. They can be something so
  762. 31:52simple like how do you say good morning
  763. 31:56first thing when you wake up? How do you
  764. 31:59say good night and you look forward to
  765. 32:02that?
  766. 32:03What do you do on the weekends when you
  767. 32:06get to sleep in?
  768. 32:08How about a date night? You know, I
  769. 32:12mean, lots of people talk about that,
  770. 32:13but do they actually do it?
  771. 32:16>> So, there's so many ways we can connect
  772. 32:19with one another that sustains the sense
  773. 32:23that uh they're right beside me. They're
  774. 32:26right there even though they're in a
  775. 32:28different office. I love that
  776. 32:30recommendation because I do think when
  777. 32:32you're in that moment as the research
  778. 32:34suggests, which I think most couples are
  779. 32:37both probably working because of the
  780. 32:38reality of how expensive life is.
  781. 32:41>> That's right.
  782. 32:41>> And coming and going and that only 35
  783. 32:46minutes a week in the I mean that's just
  784. 32:49>> and I appreciate the small thing like
  785. 32:52could you create something first thing
  786. 32:54in the morning? Could you create
  787. 32:55something that's part of the windown at
  788. 32:58night? One of the things that I remember
  789. 33:00that made a big difference and I'll just
  790. 33:01share it in case it's helpful for the
  791. 33:03person listening is since logistics was
  792. 33:05the reality and it was also the source
  793. 33:07of all of our conflict that we the one
  794. 33:11connection ritual that really changed
  795. 33:13things was we had a Sunday night
  796. 33:14calendar meeting.
  797. 33:15>> Now that doesn't exactly sound like a
  798. 33:17date night.
  799. 33:18>> Yeah. But it became
  800. 33:20a consistent thing we could do every
  801. 33:23week that helped us be aligned
  802. 33:27>> and helped us coordinate the logistics
  803. 33:30at one point.
  804. 33:32>> You were a team.
  805. 33:33>> Yes. And to this day, we do it.
  806. 33:37>> That's great.
  807. 33:38>> And it's just the smallest of things.
  808. 33:40And the other thing that I'll I have to
  809. 33:42give a huge shout out to Chris that he
  810. 33:43does that makes a big difference for me
  811. 33:46is he puts little notes just kind of
  812. 33:50like the the notebook you have. He'll
  813. 33:52rip out a page and just put I love you
  814. 33:53and I'll open up my eyeglass case in the
  815. 33:56middle of the day
  816. 33:57>> and there it is.
  817. 33:58>> Or I'll open up my wallet and there it
  818. 34:01is. And I had no idea that he had done
  819. 34:04that. And so it's kind of this little
  820. 34:06signal that I'm still here with you even
  821. 34:10though I may not be standing next to
  822. 34:12you.
  823. 34:12>> You know, a consistent research finding
  824. 34:14is that you cannot just focus on
  825. 34:17conflict as a therapist. You have to
  826. 34:20work on friendship and intimacy,
  827. 34:23>> romance, passion, play, and fun. You
  828. 34:26have to work on all of that together. It
  829. 34:28It's not enough to just make conflict
  830. 34:31better. You really have to bring you
  831. 34:34know the two souls together [laughter]
  832. 34:36in a way that is it brings joy into the
  833. 34:41relationship. Let me just mention
  834. 34:43something about your meeting which is
  835. 34:46fabulous doing that as a ritual of
  836. 34:48connection. One thing that we also talk
  837. 34:52about is a weekly meeting which often
  838. 34:55takes place on Sundays. We call it the
  839. 34:57state of the union. Right? And so um
  840. 35:02what we suggest is that first you begin
  841. 35:06with gratitude. You think of something
  842. 35:10your partner has done that maybe you
  843. 35:13haven't yet thanked them for and you
  844. 35:16express your gratitude and your
  845. 35:18appreciation to your partner for having
  846. 35:21done that. You know so often we take our
  847. 35:25partners for granted right especially
  848. 35:26after years of being together. So all of
  849. 35:30us however still need to be seen. We
  850. 35:34need to be appreciated. [snorts] And so
  851. 35:37starting with that is lovely. And then
  852. 35:40in the middle piece maybe there is a
  853. 35:42complaint that you have you haven't
  854. 35:44talked about or maybe you had a little
  855. 35:47regrettable incident that you need to
  856. 35:49process. [clears throat]
  857. 35:50Clear the air about that. Try and
  858. 35:52understand what went wrong during that
  859. 35:54and what to do right next time. And then
  860. 35:59you end the meeting with another
  861. 36:01appreciation, another expression of
  862. 36:04gratitude. I mean, there's there's
  863. 36:06nothing better than hearing gratitude as
  864. 36:11a sign that look, you're visible. You're
  865. 36:16important to me. I see who you are. I
  866. 36:20love what you do. And I want you to know
  867. 36:25I recognize you. And it's you're
  868. 36:28beautiful.
  869. 36:28>> And a great question to end the meeting
  870. 36:30with is what can I do next week to make
  871. 36:33you feel loved?
  872. 36:35>> Is that the best question in the world?
  873. 36:37>> I know.
  874. 36:38>> I would love to have us just really
  875. 36:42highlight the warning signs around
  876. 36:46conflict. And there are four horsemen of
  877. 36:49the apocalypse in your relationship.
  878. 36:51What are they?
  879. 36:52>> Okay, so the first one is criticism.
  880. 36:56Criticism means blaming a problem on a
  881. 37:00personality flaw of your partner.
  882. 37:03>> Like you're so selfish, you're so lazy,
  883. 37:05you're so inconsiderate, thoughtless,
  884. 37:07whatever. So a characteristic that's bad
  885. 37:12that you're seeing in your partner.
  886. 37:14That's criticism. Okay. Secondly is
  887. 37:18contempt.
  888. 37:20And contempt is the worst one we have.
  889. 37:23Contempt is like criticism, but you're
  890. 37:27coming from a place of superiority,
  891. 37:30looking down your nose at your partner,
  892. 37:33and you're sneering a little bit. You've
  893. 37:37got a look of disgust maybe on your
  894. 37:39face. There's scorn. There's mockery.
  895. 37:42Sometimes sarcasm
  896. 37:45is contempt. And contempt is not only
  897. 37:48the best predictor of relationship
  898. 37:51demise, but as John was saying, and I'll
  899. 37:54fine-tune it a little bit, the number of
  900. 37:57times a listener hears contempt in a
  901. 38:02conflict for 15 minutes predicts how
  902. 38:06many infectious illnesses they're going
  903. 38:08to have in the next four years.
  904. 38:12>> Right? because it is sulfuric acid for
  905. 38:15the immune system.
  906. 38:17>> Yeah, it's a big deal. The third
  907. 38:20horseman is defensiveness.
  908. 38:23We all love defensiveness. Everybody's
  909. 38:26defensive unless they have an ego of a
  910. 38:28rock. I haven't met a rock lately. So
  911. 38:32defensiveness
  912. 38:33gets manifested as either counterattack
  913. 38:37as we described or whining.
  914. 38:42>> Oh, I did too. Clean the kitchen. What
  915. 38:46do you mean? Okay. I love whining. It's
  916. 38:49It's great. And then there's
  917. 38:52stonewalling. And stonewalling is
  918. 38:55completely shutting down. But it's not
  919. 38:57shutting down for just a few seconds,
  920. 38:59you know, to come up with the right
  921. 39:01phrase. It's shutting down completely
  922. 39:05>> for minutes, minutes, minutes, long
  923. 39:08minutes, maybe hours at a time. And what
  924. 39:11brilliant John here and his colleague
  925. 39:14Bob Levenson discovered with physiology
  926. 39:18is that when a person was flooded, they
  927. 39:21were in fight or flight. Their heart
  928. 39:23rates were often over a 100 beats a
  929. 39:26minute as they sat there
  930. 39:28>> and they started stonewalling
  931. 39:29>> and they started stonewalling in order
  932. 39:33to go inside and try and soothe
  933. 39:36themselves because being in fight or
  934. 39:39flight while you're sitting there feels
  935. 39:41awful. Makes you sick.
  936. 39:44>> So that turtle thing that Chris does,
  937. 39:46right? Yes. you know, and he's just
  938. 39:48starting to calm himself down, but to
  939. 39:49the person speaking to him, it looks
  940. 39:52like he doesn't care.
  941. 39:53>> Correct.
  942. 39:54>> You know, and he's out yelling. I'm
  943. 39:57yelling cuz he's like not responding.
  944. 39:59>> That's right. So,
  945. 40:00>> and it makes it worse. Yes. I can see
  946. 40:02that. Well, the other thing is that uh
  947. 40:04Bob and I also as we kept following
  948. 40:07couples, we found there was a group of
  949. 40:08couples who didn't do the four horsemen,
  950. 40:12but when they talked about the events of
  951. 40:14the day,
  952. 40:16there was no connection.
  953. 40:18>> And they even went out of their way to
  954. 40:20show that they were bored with their
  955. 40:22partner talking about their day. So,
  956. 40:25it's not that they had all this negative
  957. 40:27stuff. They didn't have very much
  958. 40:29positivity, not very much interest in
  959. 40:31one another, not very much shared humor,
  960. 40:34affection, and those couples divorce an
  961. 40:37average of 16 years after the wedding.
  962. 40:40>> They last longer,
  963. 40:41>> but you know, it's still disaster.
  964. 40:44>> I would love to go deeper into all four
  965. 40:46of the horsemen of the apocalypse of a
  966. 40:49relationship. Could you describe for the
  967. 40:51person who's listening right now, what
  968. 40:54do you mean by flooding? So if
  969. 40:56somebody's never heard this term
  970. 40:59>> um
  971. 41:00>> and they're not quite and you know I
  972. 41:03think there's a it's kind of obvious if
  973. 41:04you're like the stonewaller or rather
  974. 41:07you shut down and you're like the turtle
  975. 41:09or you're a volcano like me but can you
  976. 41:12describe what does it mean to have this
  977. 41:15emotional flooding and what are the what
  978. 41:18are the kind of personality types of
  979. 41:20flooding if you will so the person can
  980. 41:22see themselves as we unpack back the
  981. 41:26four different horsemen if that makes
  982. 41:28sense.
  983. 41:28>> Sure. Sure. So first of all there is no
  984. 41:33correlation between personality type and
  985. 41:37flooding. Anybody can get flooded.
  986. 41:40>> Anybody first of all
  987. 41:42>> and what does that mean when you use
  988. 41:43that term flooded?
  989. 41:44>> Okay. So what it means is that you are
  990. 41:48so overwhelmed
  991. 41:51by what feels like facing a saber-tooth
  992. 41:55tiger.
  993. 41:56>> So what's happening is you're hearing
  994. 41:59what feels like an attack. It may not be
  995. 42:02one, but it feels like one. And because
  996. 42:05it feels like an attack, right? [snorts]
  997. 42:09And it's a dangerous attack. It's
  998. 42:11threatening. It sets off this
  999. 42:14fightor-flight response. And so men who
  1000. 42:18experience this and get flooded are
  1001. 42:20going to look like this. They give
  1002. 42:22themselves permission
  1003. 42:25to
  1004. 42:25>> to look away to look away. But a female
  1005. 42:29doesn't typically. And here's why.
  1006. 42:32Because you know as women from you know
  1007. 42:36this high we are trained to relate to
  1008. 42:41others to nurture others to take care of
  1009. 42:44others right to be sensitive to others
  1010. 42:47feelings. So we don't give ourselves
  1011. 42:50permission to break contact and look
  1012. 42:53away. So what flooding for a woman looks
  1013. 42:57like is very different. It looks like
  1014. 42:59this.
  1015. 43:02And you're just kind of staring.
  1016. 43:05>> Nobody's home.
  1017. 43:06>> No one's home.
  1018. 43:07>> Nobody's home. Blank face.
  1019. 43:08>> That's right. You may be meeting the
  1020. 43:11other person's eyes, but nobody's home.
  1021. 43:14You've taken yourself out.
  1022. 43:16>> I just realized my daughter does that.
  1023. 43:19>> Ah.
  1024. 43:19>> When I get like scary
  1025. 43:23that she
  1026. 43:26>> a deer in the headlights.
  1027. 43:27>> Yes. Doesn't know what to do.
  1028. 43:28>> That's right. Yeah. Okay.
  1029. 43:30>> That was very helpful. Because you're
  1030. 43:32right. If and I know that this is all
  1031. 43:35based on your research that for a lot of
  1032. 43:37men it's the crossed arms. It's the
  1033. 43:39looking away. It's the walking out of
  1034. 43:41the room
  1035. 43:42>> or going to make a drink as you're
  1036. 43:43walking
  1037. 43:44>> like following them yelling at them.
  1038. 43:47>> Yes.
  1039. 43:49>> Yeah. Yeah.
  1040. 43:50>> And it and it feels kind of awful in
  1041. 43:52your body, you know. It's it's it's
  1042. 43:54almost like having a panic attack. you
  1043. 43:56know, you're, you know, the breathing is
  1044. 43:58more shallow and more rapid and, you
  1045. 44:01know, it really feels like uh there's no
  1046. 44:04way to win here, you know. I mean, you
  1047. 44:07you just have to escape.
  1048. 44:09>> Yes, I can see that. And you're escaping
  1049. 44:12your body or the room.
  1050. 44:13>> That's right.
  1051. 44:14>> That's that was super helpful. Let's dig
  1052. 44:17into each of the four horsemen and start
  1053. 44:20with criticism.
  1054. 44:22>> Okay. How is criticism defined in the
  1055. 44:24research and
  1056. 44:26>> I'd love to have you role play.
  1057. 44:29>> Sure.
  1058. 44:29>> A example and
  1059. 44:32>> teach us how we can shift out of it.
  1060. 44:36>> Okay.
  1061. 44:37>> When we're in the middle of it,
  1062. 44:38>> let me just mention that the shifting
  1063. 44:41that you are pointing out which is very
  1064. 44:44astute is what we call repair.
  1065. 44:47>> Okay. So making a repair during
  1066. 44:51a conversation is a great way to step
  1067. 44:54aside from those four horsemen and make
  1068. 44:56the conversation flow better.
  1069. 44:59>> Okay. Okay. So um again I think the
  1070. 45:03definition of it would be blaming a
  1071. 45:06problem on a personality flaw of your
  1072. 45:08partner. That's what it is.
  1073. 45:10>> So let me start.
  1074. 45:10>> Okay. Go ahead. I've been
  1075. 45:12[clears throat] uh meaning to talk to
  1076. 45:15you because I think that uh I have
  1077. 45:18something to teach you.
  1078. 45:21You know
  1079. 45:21>> what do you mean?
  1080. 45:22>> Uh well, you know, I noticed that, you
  1081. 45:24know, you kind of get upset when the
  1082. 45:26house is in some kind of disarray and I
  1083. 45:28don't have that problem. You know, I can
  1084. 45:30concentrate really well, you know,
  1085. 45:32whatever's going on around me. So I can
  1086. 45:35kind of teach you to focus your mind
  1087. 45:37more cuz I think your mind is kind of um
  1088. 45:41weak, you know. I think your your mind
  1089. 45:44is not
  1090. 45:44>> You think my mind is weak?
  1091. 45:47>> Yeah. I think you have a weak mind and I
  1092. 45:49can help you strengthen your mind better
  1093. 45:52not as much as I am.
  1094. 45:53>> You did.
  1095. 45:55>> What?
  1096. 45:56>> I don't have a weak mind. What are you
  1097. 45:58talking about?
  1098. 45:58>> Well, I'm just trying to be helpful to
  1099. 46:00you. I you know I'm trying I'm trying to
  1100. 46:03help you strengthen your mind so it's
  1101. 46:05more like my mind.
  1102. 46:06>> I tell you what, go help the dog. Okay.
  1103. 46:10Not me. Okay. So that's criticism.
  1104. 46:13>> All right. Got it.
  1105. 46:14>> The antidote for each of those.
  1106. 46:17>> Yeah. So how do I do that?
  1107. 46:18>> We're going to So I'll make a repair.
  1108. 46:20>> Okay.
  1109. 46:20>> Okay. Okay. So why don't you pick up
  1110. 46:23>> Yeah. [snorts] You know, [clears throat]
  1111. 46:25like I was saying, you know, I really
  1112. 46:27can help you focus your mind better and
  1113. 46:32be more much more like me, you know,
  1114. 46:34>> honey.
  1115. 46:35>> Yeah.
  1116. 46:36>> I need to tell you, I'm really feeling
  1117. 46:38defensive right now.
  1118. 46:40>> You are.
  1119. 46:40>> I don't want to be defensive, but I feel
  1120. 46:43that way. The way that you're describing
  1121. 46:47me feels to me like a put down.
  1122. 46:50>> Oh. Can you say what you want to say in
  1123. 46:53different words?
  1124. 46:55>> Um,
  1125. 46:58well, okay. Um,
  1126. 47:02I think it would be great if even when
  1127. 47:05there were a lot of books around and
  1128. 47:07papers around that you were okay with
  1129. 47:10that, you didn't get upset.
  1130. 47:13Tall order. [laughter] Yeah. Well, I
  1131. 47:17tell you what, I I hear you and I know
  1132. 47:22that I probably come across as a nag
  1133. 47:24sometimes. I'm sure I do.
  1134. 47:27>> Uh
  1135. 47:28>> I would say that. Yeah,
  1136. 47:29>> I bet you would.
  1137. 47:31>> Um but I, you know, I think I can spend
  1138. 47:35some of the time feeling comfortable
  1139. 47:38with everything
  1140. 47:40scattered around.
  1141. 47:42However,
  1142. 47:44I think you probably know me well enough
  1143. 47:46to understand that when my environment
  1144. 47:50[snorts]
  1145. 47:50feels chaotic just to me, it may not be
  1146. 47:54to you, but it is to me.
  1147. 47:57>> Then I get all discombobulated inside. I
  1148. 48:01feel really disorganized.
  1149. 48:04And so all the papers and so on
  1150. 48:07contribute unfortunately to my having
  1151. 48:11that feeling. I wish I wasn't like that,
  1152. 48:13but I am
  1153. 48:15>> cuz I I I think that a house ought to be
  1154. 48:17a little bit messy to be comfortable.
  1155. 48:19>> Yeah, I know you do.
  1156. 48:20>> You know, just [laughter]
  1157. 48:21my mom used to clean clean the place to
  1158. 48:25within an inch of its life, you know.
  1159. 48:27>> I love your mom.
  1160. 48:28>> And she put plastic on all the
  1161. 48:30furniture.
  1162. 48:30>> She was crazy. That's true. I remember.
  1163. 48:33Yeah.
  1164. 48:33>> Yeah. Okay. Well, you don't have to sit
  1165. 48:36on plastic. Okay. [laughter]
  1166. 48:38>> It's okay.
  1167. 48:39>> Yeah.
  1168. 48:39>> Right.
  1169. 48:40>> Beautiful. And I saw you repaired by
  1170. 48:43using I
  1171. 48:44>> That's right.
  1172. 48:45>> I feel
  1173. 48:46>> That's right.
  1174. 48:47>> I feel defensive. So, when you're
  1175. 48:49getting criticized, saying I feel
  1176. 48:51defensive right now
  1177. 48:52>> instead of going defensive.
  1178. 48:54>> Right.
  1179. 48:54>> Right. Or instead of counterattacking.
  1180. 48:57>> Yes. Or stop criticizing me.
  1181. 48:59>> Yeah. Exactly.
  1182. 49:00>> I feel defensive. That's the repair for
  1183. 49:03criticism.
  1184. 49:03>> Yep.
  1185. 49:04>> Got it. Beautiful. Let's move on to
  1186. 49:08contempt.
  1187. 49:09>> Okay. You want to define that one,
  1188. 49:11honey?
  1189. 49:11>> Yeah. Contempt has this air of
  1190. 49:14superiority. You know, I'm better than
  1191. 49:16you.
  1192. 49:17>> Can you show us what contempt looks and
  1193. 49:20sounds like and how it is different than
  1194. 49:25criticism?
  1195. 49:26>> Mhm. Mhm.
  1196. 49:28>> You can't do anything right, can you?
  1197. 49:31What are you talking about? God, I mean,
  1198. 49:34you know, even when you go shopping, you
  1199. 49:36spend too much money. You know, you
  1200. 49:38spend too much money on clothes. So, you
  1201. 49:40know, I you know,
  1202. 49:41>> so what?
  1203. 49:42>> Well, we're we're trying to save for a
  1204. 49:44down payment on a house and you're
  1205. 49:46ruining the whole thing. You just spent
  1206. 49:49it.
  1207. 49:49>> I'm ruining the whole thing.
  1208. 49:51>> Right.
  1209. 49:52>> How dare you? You just went out and
  1210. 49:55bought a Porsche for God's sakes, and
  1211. 49:57I'm
  1212. 49:57>> I need that for my work. I need that.
  1213. 50:00I I wouldn't spend it if I didn't need
  1214. 50:03it for my work
  1215. 50:04>> to take it back. I need to take it back.
  1216. 50:06Okay. So, that's one example. So, it's
  1217. 50:09judgment
  1218. 50:10>> but from a place of superiority.
  1219. 50:14What about the eye rolling
  1220. 50:18>> and the like your example
  1221. 50:20>> like you get another one
  1222. 50:22>> with eye rolling and the cheek? Well, I
  1223. 50:25I I was thinking of an example that uh
  1224. 50:28one of our therapists talked about. He
  1225. 50:31seeing this couple
  1226. 50:32>> and she was being contemptuous and he
  1227. 50:35said, "Do you think you're better than
  1228. 50:37me?"
  1229. 50:39And she said, "Better than I."
  1230. 50:46Boom. Wow. Isn't that a killer? Correct
  1231. 50:49their grammar. That's a great way to be
  1232. 50:52contemptuous.
  1233. 50:55>> Ouch. [snorts]
  1234. 50:56I have a couple in my life that's
  1235. 50:57uncomfortable to be around because as
  1236. 50:59one person's talking, the other one is
  1237. 51:02like rolling their eyes. That's right.
  1238. 51:04>> As they leave the room, they complain
  1239. 51:07about them.
  1240. 51:09And why is contempt the most harmful?
  1241. 51:15And let's start there. It's really it's
  1242. 51:17really a murder attempt
  1243. 51:20>> at the person's sense of self
  1244. 51:23>> and the Jewish Talmud talks about it as
  1245. 51:27murder.
  1246. 51:28>> You know, you're destroying the other
  1247. 51:30person's sense of self and you're saying
  1248. 51:33you are worthless.
  1249. 51:36>> And that's the worst attack. You know,
  1250. 51:40it's not just something you do that I
  1251. 51:42don't like, but I don't like you.
  1252. 51:45>> Right? M
  1253. 51:45>> I call it
  1254. 51:47>> I call it character assassination.
  1255. 51:50>> That's what it is.
  1256. 51:51>> And do people that are contemptuous
  1257. 51:53actually are they able to recognize it?
  1258. 51:57>> Uh not always. Usually the listener is
  1259. 52:01the one who recognizes it. You know, um
  1260. 52:05the other person usually has a pretty
  1261. 52:07heavy sense of entitlement
  1262. 52:09>> that they deserve to say that. But let
  1263. 52:12me also add something about why it's so
  1264. 52:15destructive
  1265. 52:17>> that you know a lot of people don't
  1266. 52:19really think about and acknowledge but
  1267. 52:22none of us got parented perfectly right
  1268. 52:26none of us got taught with absolute
  1269. 52:30appreciation in school. So all of us
  1270. 52:34have at base at least a part of
  1271. 52:37ourselves that's insecure,
  1272. 52:40>> that needs to be loved, that needs to be
  1273. 52:43cared about. And some people like to say
  1274. 52:47that that's immature
  1275. 52:50or, you know, you're just not a
  1276. 52:51grown-up. And I would like to say to
  1277. 52:54them, no, that's wrong. We all have that
  1278. 53:00inside ourselves. We don't lose that
  1279. 53:04core of insecurity
  1280. 53:07and the need to be looked at with care,
  1281. 53:13with love, with understanding,
  1282. 53:16to be spoken to with respect, even
  1283. 53:20admiration.
  1284. 53:21>> None of us lose that. We just add layers
  1285. 53:25on top of it as we grow older. But it's
  1286. 53:28still inside there and it can still get
  1287. 53:32hit if somebody expresses contempt.
  1288. 53:36>> That makes a lot of sense.
  1289. 53:38>> So if you're the one that's getting
  1290. 53:40stepped on and demeaned and interrupted
  1291. 53:44and corrected
  1292. 53:46by your partner, how do you repair this?
  1293. 53:49>> Okay, so here's how I would repair it.
  1294. 53:53Let's say he's just been contemptuous.
  1295. 53:55>> Mhm.
  1296. 53:57So,
  1297. 53:59you know, John, there's no way that I
  1298. 54:03can hear what you're saying right now
  1299. 54:06because I feel so insulted
  1300. 54:10>> by what you're saying. I don't know if
  1301. 54:12that's your intention or not,
  1302. 54:14>> but
  1303. 54:16I feel like shrinking away.
  1304. 54:18>> I want to just disappear. No, I don't
  1305. 54:21want that
  1306. 54:22>> because it it it really I feel really
  1307. 54:26hurt
  1308. 54:27>> by what you're saying.
  1309. 54:29>> So, I wish you would flip what you just
  1310. 54:33said on its head and tell me what you do
  1311. 54:37want
  1312. 54:38>> or you do like rather
  1313. 54:41>> than this wave of negativity I'm
  1314. 54:44getting.
  1315. 54:44>> I feel like I'm judging you
  1316. 54:47>> big time.
  1317. 54:47>> Yeah.
  1318. 54:48>> Yeah. Okay,
  1319. 54:50>> that's what it looks like.
  1320. 54:52>> And when you get somebody that says, "I
  1321. 54:54am judging you." Now you're like
  1322. 54:56realizing, "Okay."
  1323. 54:57>> Okay. Well, that's okay. So, let's say I
  1324. 55:00am, you know,
  1325. 55:01>> I'm just trying to give you feedback,
  1326. 55:04>> honey. The effect of the feedback and
  1327. 55:07the way that you're giving it to me
  1328. 55:10pushes me away.
  1329. 55:12>> It makes me want to run away from you
  1330. 55:14because it hurts so much.
  1331. 55:17Feedback. I can hear if you're telling
  1332. 55:20me what you do want,
  1333. 55:22>> not what you don't.
  1334. 55:23>> Okay.
  1335. 55:24>> Or what you don't like.
  1336. 55:25>> Good point.
  1337. 55:29>> Amazingly helpful. I love that. I I feel
  1338. 55:32insulted. I feel hurt cuz what ends up
  1339. 55:36happening when it's you that is getting
  1340. 55:38stepped on is you tend to flood
  1341. 55:41>> and you don't know what to do.
  1342. 55:42>> That's right.
  1343. 55:43>> Yes.
  1344. 55:43>> That's right.
  1345. 55:44>> Wow.
  1346. 55:44>> Yeah. Respect is is as important as
  1347. 55:47affection.
  1348. 55:48>> Respect is as important as infection.
  1349. 55:51>> Yeah. Especially for women. I think you
  1350. 55:54know today
  1351. 55:56women need to feel that their partner
  1352. 55:59values and respects them and
  1353. 56:03as much as they respect anybody,
  1354. 56:05>> you know. So, one of my New Year's
  1355. 56:08resolutions was, let me try to treat
  1356. 56:12Julie with the kind of respect that I
  1357. 56:15treated my father with.
  1358. 56:18>> And I had to work on that and
  1359. 56:23become self-aware of ways in which I was
  1360. 56:26not communicating respect. For example,
  1361. 56:30it takes her longer to get ready than it
  1362. 56:32does me. So, you know,
  1363. 56:35>> I would get in the car and wait for her.
  1364. 56:38And while I was in the car, I was
  1365. 56:39saying, "What the heck? Why does it take
  1366. 56:42so," you know, by the time she came out
  1367. 56:44to the car, I had worked myself into a
  1368. 56:47frenzy, you know, of anger about this
  1369. 56:50thing? And you know, instead I sat in
  1370. 56:53the car and said, you know, she there's
  1371. 56:55a lot of really important stuff that she
  1372. 56:57sees that I don't see at all and she
  1373. 57:00needs to get those things done before
  1374. 57:03she feels ready to leave the house.
  1375. 57:06>> So, I think I'll just read my novel and
  1376. 57:09whenever she comes out, you know,
  1377. 57:12>> this was an issue in our marriage, too.
  1378. 57:14>> Yeah. [laughter] Chris would be sitting
  1379. 57:16in the pickup in the driveway running
  1380. 57:19and I'm still putting my makeup on and
  1381. 57:21then I'm running around the house
  1382. 57:22looking for my keys cuz I forgot that
  1383. 57:24he's driving [laughter] and when I would
  1384. 57:27then get in the car he would be really
  1385. 57:30frustrated.
  1386. 57:30>> Yeah.
  1387. 57:31>> And I'd get an earful about it and now I
  1388. 57:36try a little harder and he's usually
  1389. 57:39listening to an audio book when I get in
  1390. 57:40the [laughter] pickup truck that's been
  1391. 57:42running for 11 minutes. I've shaved like
  1392. 57:44four minutes off.
  1393. 57:46He is the best ever. [laughter]
  1394. 57:50I love Marshalls. I mean, come on. Don't
  1395. 57:53you love Marshalls? Of course you do. I
  1396. 57:56am so excited that Marshalls is now a
  1397. 57:59sponsor of the Mel Robbins podcast
  1398. 58:01because at Marshalls, you get the good
  1399. 58:04stuff. Brand names and styles that you
  1400. 58:06love for way less. And isn't it so fun
  1401. 58:09to walk into Marshalls and you're like,
  1402. 58:12"Okay, I wonder what's in here, and I
  1403. 58:15bet there's some really good deals." It
  1404. 58:18instantly puts you in a good mood. How
  1405. 58:21do they do it? Well, the buyers at
  1406. 58:24Marshalls, they are hustling behind the
  1407. 58:25scenes 24/7 to bring you really cool
  1408. 58:29things and all the great deals. That
  1409. 58:31means you only have to worry about
  1410. 58:33having fun shopping everything from
  1411. 58:35dresses to denim to shoes. Another
  1412. 58:38reason why I love shopping at Marshalls,
  1413. 58:40I can shop for the whole family. And I'm
  1414. 58:42so impressed by the designers and all
  1415. 58:45the styles they stock. Marshalls, they
  1416. 58:48get the deals, you get the good stuff.
  1417. 58:50Shop now at marshalls.com or find a
  1418. 58:52store near you. The third horsemen uh of
  1419. 58:56the apocalypse of your relationship is
  1420. 58:59defensiveness.
  1421. 59:01What is defensiveness? And why is it so
  1422. 59:04automatic? You know, like it's just like
  1423. 59:07you you just kind of feel like you
  1424. 59:09should defend yourself. What should you
  1425. 59:11do instead?
  1426. 59:13>> You know, that lawyer that I talked
  1427. 59:15about, he was amazing at not getting
  1428. 59:17defensive when his wife was criticizing
  1429. 59:19him. And he he really was saying, "She's
  1430. 59:22got an important point. I just don't
  1431. 59:24know what it is. I have to help
  1432. 59:25[laughter] her. I have to help her get
  1433. 59:27to it, you know. Uh, but I'm sure she's
  1434. 59:30she's got something she really wants to
  1435. 59:32tell me that's important. And he had
  1436. 59:34that attitude. Very respectful, you
  1437. 59:37know, and
  1438. 59:39I think that's the attitude you got to
  1439. 59:41take. Instead of saying I'm innocent,
  1440. 59:44you know, I have I have no
  1441. 59:45responsibility in this. I'm I'm pretty
  1442. 59:48much perfect. If there's anybody
  1443. 59:50defective, it's you. That's a really bad
  1444. 59:52attitude [laughter]
  1445. 59:54because you're not going to listen if
  1446. 59:55you have that attitude. I would love to
  1447. 59:57hear you guys role play and if you could
  1448. 1:00:00do an example where one of you wishes
  1449. 1:00:04the other one would either lose weight
  1450. 1:00:07or take a little better care of
  1451. 1:00:08themselves or you know get a trainer or
  1452. 1:00:12actually pick up the weights that we
  1453. 1:00:14bought last year and use them. You know
  1454. 1:00:17what I'm saying? And then you know and
  1455. 1:00:18then the other ones that because I think
  1456. 1:00:19this is something that is
  1457. 1:00:21>> Oh boy.
  1458. 1:00:22>> Yes.
  1459. 1:00:22>> That's a hot issue.
  1460. 1:00:23>> Yeah. It's a hot issue.
  1461. 1:00:24>> Yeah. Okay.
  1462. 1:00:26>> So, let's say let's say you criticize
  1463. 1:00:28me, you know. Yeah.
  1464. 1:00:30>> For, you know, having a tummy in, but
  1465. 1:00:32you're really worried about my health.
  1466. 1:00:34It's really,
  1467. 1:00:35>> right? Yeah.
  1468. 1:00:36>> Okay. Uh, let's see, [clears throat]
  1469. 1:00:41>> John.
  1470. 1:00:43Uh, I need to talk to you about
  1471. 1:00:44something. You know, I know that you
  1472. 1:00:48love sitting and reading your books,
  1473. 1:00:52especially your mathematic books, which
  1474. 1:00:54I can not understand one page of.
  1475. 1:00:58>> Yeah.
  1476. 1:00:58>> But honey, I'm you know, you really,
  1477. 1:01:02really, really should go to the gym more
  1478. 1:01:04often. You really should. You're only
  1479. 1:01:06going to the gym like once a month.
  1480. 1:01:09That's not going to do anything for your
  1481. 1:01:11body. That's I mean, you know, your
  1482. 1:01:14body's starting to get a little kind of
  1483. 1:01:18flabby or something. I mean, just that
  1484. 1:01:22belly is
  1485. 1:01:24going out further and further.
  1486. 1:01:27>> Well,
  1487. 1:01:30I think I'm fine.
  1488. 1:01:32>> You think you're fine?
  1489. 1:01:34>> Yeah. Honey, the thing that I'm worried
  1490. 1:01:37about, and this is true for both of us,
  1491. 1:01:40is that we're both getting older, right?
  1492. 1:01:44And you know, you've read all the
  1493. 1:01:46newspaper articles about being fit
  1494. 1:01:50really adds years to your life, being
  1495. 1:01:54healthy, exercising is one of the best
  1496. 1:01:56things you can do.
  1497. 1:01:58I just read this article about a guy
  1498. 1:02:00who's a long-distance runner and he had
  1499. 1:02:02a heart attack while he was running and
  1500. 1:02:04he was 40 years old.
  1501. 1:02:06>> So, I don't think I don't think exercise
  1502. 1:02:08is such a great thing.
  1503. 1:02:09>> But honey,
  1504. 1:02:09>> a lot of these athletes are pretty
  1505. 1:02:11stupid.
  1506. 1:02:12>> Well,
  1507. 1:02:13what they found is that there was a
  1508. 1:02:15heart defect there. It wasn't the
  1509. 1:02:19running that caused it. It was the heart
  1510. 1:02:21defect.
  1511. 1:02:22>> But
  1512. 1:02:23>> you don't think he overdid it?
  1513. 1:02:24>> No, I don't think so. But if you don't
  1514. 1:02:28exercise, I'm really afraid that you may
  1515. 1:02:32suffer a heart attack,
  1516. 1:02:34right?
  1517. 1:02:35>> Yeah.
  1518. 1:02:36>> I mean, I don't want to lose you. I do
  1519. 1:02:40not want to lose you.
  1520. 1:02:42>> And so, I'm wondering, how can I support
  1521. 1:02:47you going to the gym more often? Or does
  1522. 1:02:50that feel too controlling?
  1523. 1:02:53No, I think what if we went together?
  1524. 1:02:56>> Love it. Would you be [clears throat]
  1525. 1:02:58willing to make the time?
  1526. 1:03:00>> Yeah, if I can swim.
  1527. 1:03:02>> Sure.
  1528. 1:03:02>> I like to swim.
  1529. 1:03:03>> Swimming is great.
  1530. 1:03:05>> Yeah,
  1531. 1:03:05>> swimming is wonderful.
  1532. 1:03:06>> I haven't been in a long time.
  1533. 1:03:07>> You haven't?
  1534. 1:03:08>> Yeah.
  1535. 1:03:08>> You want to do it again?
  1536. 1:03:10>> Yeah.
  1537. 1:03:11>> Well, yay.
  1538. 1:03:12>> All right.
  1539. 1:03:13>> That would be terrific.
  1540. 1:03:14>> Okay.
  1541. 1:03:15>> I'll work on it.
  1542. 1:03:15>> Okay.
  1543. 1:03:16>> Yeah.
  1544. 1:03:19How do you tell someone that it's not
  1545. 1:03:22that you're worried about them, it's
  1546. 1:03:23that you're losing interest in them?
  1547. 1:03:25>> Oh, okay. That's a good one.
  1548. 1:03:28>> Cuz I think the exercise thing is a big
  1549. 1:03:32one.
  1550. 1:03:32>> Yeah. And you know, like really taking
  1551. 1:03:36care of yourself. And yes, there's the
  1552. 1:03:38I'm afraid something that's going to
  1553. 1:03:40happen, but it's also like I actually am
  1554. 1:03:43pulling away from you because I'm not
  1555. 1:03:46proud to be with you or I am losing my
  1556. 1:03:49attraction to you.
  1557. 1:03:50>> Okay.
  1558. 1:03:53I have something I want to talk to you
  1559. 1:03:55about that is super sensitive.
  1560. 1:03:59>> Uh-oh.
  1561. 1:04:00>> I know.
  1562. 1:04:00>> Let me get my notebook. You better get
  1563. 1:04:02your notebook.
  1564. 1:04:03>> And let me preface it. Let me preface it
  1565. 1:04:06by saying I adore you. I love you so so
  1566. 1:04:11so much.
  1567. 1:04:13>> That's nice to hear.
  1568. 1:04:14>> Yeah.
  1569. 1:04:16>> But
  1570. 1:04:17>> Oh, it is a butt.
  1571. 1:04:18>> Yep. Here comes the sensitive part.
  1572. 1:04:22I don't know exactly what's happening,
  1573. 1:04:25but as you've been gaining weight,
  1574. 1:04:30>> becoming more of a sphere
  1575. 1:04:34instead of a triangle. [snorts]
  1576. 1:04:39I don't know. My libido is going down.
  1577. 1:04:43My sexual interest
  1578. 1:04:47is declining.
  1579. 1:04:48>> Oh, that sucks.
  1580. 1:04:50Well, it does because I love you and I
  1581. 1:04:54really really want to express that
  1582. 1:04:56physically to you,
  1583. 1:04:59but at the same time, I really, really
  1584. 1:05:02loved it when you were working out. And
  1585. 1:05:07I could feel the muscles in your back,
  1586. 1:05:10in your shoulders, your arms. It It felt
  1587. 1:05:14really wonderful.
  1588. 1:05:15>> So, I wrote down lose weight and get
  1589. 1:05:18more sex.
  1590. 1:05:20That's a possibility.
  1591. 1:05:21>> All right. Okay.
  1592. 1:05:22>> What do you think? Would you like that?
  1593. 1:05:25Would you like to get more sex? Because
  1594. 1:05:28>> if about 20 lbs melted away,
  1595. 1:05:34>> I bet you my sexual interest.
  1596. 1:05:40>> Great idea.
  1597. 1:05:41>> Yeah.
  1598. 1:05:42>> Okay.
  1599. 1:05:43Tada.
  1600. 1:05:46>> [laughter]
  1601. 1:05:46>> I'm sorry I'm laughing, but I You two
  1602. 1:05:49are adorable and
  1603. 1:05:51and we have all been in a relationship
  1604. 1:05:54like that. The fourth horseman that's
  1605. 1:05:56going to destroy your relationship
  1606. 1:05:58potentially is stonewalling, right?
  1607. 1:06:00>> We've talked a little bit about it, but
  1608. 1:06:02just so we're clear about what it is.
  1609. 1:06:04Okay.
  1610. 1:06:06Well, you know, we actually didn't
  1611. 1:06:08understand it when we first saw it. And
  1612. 1:06:11we brought men back in and said, "What
  1613. 1:06:14was going through your mind right
  1614. 1:06:16there?"
  1615. 1:06:18And so we got this sort of internal
  1616. 1:06:22monologue that guys were going through
  1617. 1:06:25and they really were saying, "This is
  1618. 1:06:28hopeless. I just gota I got to endure
  1619. 1:06:31this. I got to get through this." and
  1620. 1:06:35you know,
  1621. 1:06:37don't say anything because whatever you
  1622. 1:06:39say, you're going to make it worse and
  1623. 1:06:42you know, I'm just going to go get a get
  1624. 1:06:45a beer and watch the game, you know, and
  1625. 1:06:48not think about this. Let me out of
  1626. 1:06:50here. That's what they were thinking,
  1627. 1:06:53you know, and it was sad, you know, is
  1628. 1:06:56really like I'm overwhelmed, you know,
  1629. 1:06:59I'm in a war zone,
  1630. 1:07:01>> you know, and there there aren't any
  1631. 1:07:03shelters,
  1632. 1:07:05>> you know.
  1633. 1:07:07>> Can you give us a example of what this
  1634. 1:07:09sort of sounds like in a relationship?
  1635. 1:07:13>> Uh,
  1636. 1:07:13>> when one when you know the man go or
  1637. 1:07:16typically the guy, but often it can be
  1638. 1:07:19the the the woman
  1639. 1:07:20>> can be. Yeah. Yeah. 15% of the time it
  1640. 1:07:23was a woman stonewalling,
  1641. 1:07:25>> right? Well, let's let's do you
  1642. 1:07:28stonewalling.
  1643. 1:07:29>> Okay.
  1644. 1:07:29>> Okay. Uh so I don't understand why you
  1645. 1:07:34haven't paid the bills. I mean, the
  1646. 1:07:37bills have got to be paid. Why aren't
  1647. 1:07:39you paying the bills, man? They're
  1648. 1:07:41sitting there on the table.
  1649. 1:07:43>> This is not a big deal. I just
  1650. 1:07:46>> I don't want to talk about this,
  1651. 1:07:47>> John. It's a huge deal. You're going to
  1652. 1:07:50ruin our credit if you don't pay the
  1653. 1:07:53bills. Would you please pay the bills?
  1654. 1:07:57So, what are you doing now? You're
  1655. 1:07:59pretending I don't exist. You're just
  1656. 1:08:02blocking me out.
  1657. 1:08:05Honey, pay the frigin bills. What's the
  1658. 1:08:08big deal?
  1659. 1:08:13[sighs]
  1660. 1:08:14God
  1661. 1:08:16there. that
  1662. 1:08:19>> that's what it looked like
  1663. 1:08:21>> cuz we've all seen it and experienced
  1664. 1:08:23it. And if you were listening and not
  1665. 1:08:25watching this episode as Julie was, you
  1666. 1:08:29know, basically telling him what to do
  1667. 1:08:32and criticizing him and then the huff at
  1668. 1:08:34the end is contempt that [snorts]
  1669. 1:08:36>> Yes.
  1670. 1:08:37>> Right. Right. that exclamation point of
  1671. 1:08:41uh you John crossed your arms and looked
  1672. 1:08:44down and looked away and it is this act
  1673. 1:08:48of like there's nothing to do. I just
  1674. 1:08:50need to endure this until she shuts up.
  1675. 1:08:52>> Right.
  1676. 1:08:53>> And that's the only option here.
  1677. 1:08:55>> Yeah. And and also
  1678. 1:08:59if I say anything it'll get worse.
  1679. 1:09:02>> Yes.
  1680. 1:09:02>> It's bad now but if I say anything it
  1681. 1:09:04I'll make it worse. How the heck do you
  1682. 1:09:06repair something like that if you're the
  1683. 1:09:09stonewaller
  1684. 1:09:10and you've got somebody who's critical
  1685. 1:09:12of you?
  1686. 1:09:13>> Okay, like can the stonewaller like can
  1687. 1:09:16you teach a stonewaller to repair? Cuz a
  1688. 1:09:18stonewaller does not trust that it's
  1689. 1:09:21going to get better if I say anything.
  1690. 1:09:22>> Okay, don't forget
  1691. 1:09:24>> Yes.
  1692. 1:09:25>> that what goes along with stonewalling
  1693. 1:09:27is a heart rate over a 100 beats a
  1694. 1:09:30minute.
  1695. 1:09:31>> Oh, true. It looks like you're calm.
  1696. 1:09:34>> Yeah. Yes, it does. But because John and
  1697. 1:09:38Bob had g their couples hooked up to
  1698. 1:09:42physiology that that measured heart
  1699. 1:09:46rate,
  1700. 1:09:48we saw those heart rates like through
  1701. 1:09:50the ceiling 140, 150 and so
  1702. 1:09:53>> 10 seconds before they started
  1703. 1:09:55stonewalling. I never ever ever looked
  1704. 1:09:58at stonewalling
  1705. 1:10:00as somebody who's panicked and
  1706. 1:10:03overwhelmed.
  1707. 1:10:05>> I've always seen this as a power play.
  1708. 1:10:08>> Yes.
  1709. 1:10:08>> That you're denying me attention and you
  1710. 1:10:14are trying to just block me out as a way
  1711. 1:10:17to control me.
  1712. 1:10:18>> Exactly.
  1713. 1:10:20And that is wrong.
  1714. 1:10:22>> Stonewalling is an attempt to self soo.
  1715. 1:10:25>> Right. going inside. Okay.
  1716. 1:10:28She can't touch me when I watch the
  1717. 1:10:30game. So, the game starts in 10 minutes.
  1718. 1:10:33I'm going to go watch the game.
  1719. 1:10:35>> I'll have a beer. I'll calm down.
  1720. 1:10:37>> Yeah. So, let me tell you
  1721. 1:10:39>> now. Well,
  1722. 1:10:41>> yeah. Let me tell you what the antidote
  1723. 1:10:44is. It's not saying something. Exactly.
  1724. 1:10:47[gasps]
  1725. 1:10:48>> The only antidote is to do something to
  1726. 1:10:52calm your physiology down.
  1727. 1:10:55Okay, so we've seen the antidote. It is
  1728. 1:11:01you tell your partner you need to take a
  1729. 1:11:03break, that you're flooded, you need to
  1730. 1:11:07take a break, and you tell your partner
  1731. 1:11:11when you will come back to continue the
  1732. 1:11:15conversation. And typically, the minimum
  1733. 1:11:19a break takes is 20 to 30 minutes. the
  1734. 1:11:23most would be 24 hours. Okay.
  1735. 1:11:26>> What do you do during the break? You do
  1736. 1:11:29not think about the fight because if you
  1737. 1:11:33keep thinking about the fight and oh, I
  1738. 1:11:35should say this when I go back,
  1739. 1:11:37>> you'll stay flooded
  1740. 1:11:39>> because you're still hooked into the
  1741. 1:11:42fight that is elevating your heart rate.
  1742. 1:11:46You need to do something else like
  1743. 1:11:48reading a book, reading a magazine,
  1744. 1:11:51watching TV, playing with the puppy,
  1745. 1:11:54even going for a run is fine. Uh taking
  1746. 1:11:58a walk, doing your email,
  1747. 1:12:01something that takes your mind off the
  1748. 1:12:04fight,
  1749. 1:12:05>> okay?
  1750. 1:12:06>> So that
  1751. 1:12:08those stress hormones can metabolize out
  1752. 1:12:11of your body. You see? So when you feel
  1753. 1:12:14it's especially hard for guys,
  1754. 1:12:16>> I would imagine
  1755. 1:12:17>> because uh you know Bob Levenson did a
  1756. 1:12:19study of startle. You know you have a
  1757. 1:12:22gun a blank gun go off behind somebody.
  1758. 1:12:27>> Women
  1759. 1:12:29feel fear. Men feel a desire to get even
  1760. 1:12:36>> get angry.
  1761. 1:12:37>> Get angry. Get even with the experiment.
  1762. 1:12:40They feel, you know, an rage about
  1763. 1:12:43having been startled. And so that
  1764. 1:12:46maintains the physiological arousal. And
  1765. 1:12:49it was probably adaptive in our, you
  1766. 1:12:52know, ancestors time to stay
  1767. 1:12:56physiologically aroused when you're
  1768. 1:12:58hunting or protecting the tribe. But
  1769. 1:13:00during a conversation with your lover,
  1770. 1:13:04it it's not helpful to stay
  1771. 1:13:06physiologically aroused. It's
  1772. 1:13:08counterproductive. can't listen, right?
  1773. 1:13:10So you So it's a challenge for men
  1774. 1:13:13during the break to really distract
  1775. 1:13:15themselves and do something entirely
  1776. 1:13:18different.
  1777. 1:13:18>> But the big breakthrough is to utter the
  1778. 1:13:23words, I am emotionally
  1779. 1:13:26shut down or I'm emotionally flooded or
  1780. 1:13:28I'm flooded right now.
  1781. 1:13:29>> I'm flooded. I'm flooded.
  1782. 1:13:31>> I'm flooded.
  1783. 1:13:32>> I need to take a break.
  1784. 1:13:35>> [snorts]
  1785. 1:13:35>> And you know the good thing about saying
  1786. 1:13:39I'll be back in 30 minutes is that a lot
  1787. 1:13:43of people when you say I'm going to go
  1788. 1:13:45take a break and they go
  1789. 1:13:48the other person feels rejected
  1790. 1:13:51thinks oh great we're never going to get
  1791. 1:13:54back to this topic we're never going to
  1792. 1:13:56solve this we're never going to talk
  1793. 1:13:58about it right
  1794. 1:13:59>> so saying
  1795. 1:14:01let's come back in a half an hour when
  1796. 1:14:03I'm calmer and let's try again
  1797. 1:14:07makes a huge difference.
  1798. 1:14:09>> It makes a lot of sense. Why is Can we
  1799. 1:14:12just move on? Why is that one of the
  1800. 1:14:14biggest mistakes that you can make after
  1801. 1:14:17a blowup?
  1802. 1:14:19>> Flooding, you mean?
  1803. 1:14:20>> Oh, can we
  1804. 1:14:20>> just saying that? Can we just move on?
  1805. 1:14:22>> Oh,
  1806. 1:14:23>> let's not talk about this.
  1807. 1:14:24>> Let's not talk about this.
  1808. 1:14:25>> Oh god, that's so terrible. Well, the
  1809. 1:14:27problem in the relationship when you
  1810. 1:14:30say, "Let's just not talk about this
  1811. 1:14:32anymore."
  1812. 1:14:34It's another way of saying
  1813. 1:14:38whatever you're thinking isn't
  1814. 1:14:40important, so let's just drop it. You're
  1815. 1:14:43not important.
  1816. 1:14:45>> What a message, right? It's a terrible
  1817. 1:14:48message.
  1818. 1:14:50>> So, tell you, don't do it.
  1819. 1:14:53>> Yes. I I that is you're absolutely
  1820. 1:14:57right.
  1821. 1:14:57>> And then there's a loss of trust,
  1822. 1:14:59>> right?
  1823. 1:15:00>> Which is really damaging to the
  1824. 1:15:02relationship,
  1825. 1:15:03>> right?
  1826. 1:15:03>> I can't trust you to really keep your
  1827. 1:15:06promises
  1828. 1:15:07>> or be there for me.
  1829. 1:15:09>> Or be there for me.
  1830. 1:15:10>> Yeah.
  1831. 1:15:10>> Yeah.
  1832. 1:15:11>> Let's talk about turning toward each
  1833. 1:15:13other. So important. So important. So
  1834. 1:15:17that's something that that one of my
  1835. 1:15:19graduate students, Janice Driver, really
  1836. 1:15:21noticed in the apartment lab. There'd be
  1837. 1:15:24these small moments when one person
  1838. 1:15:27would try to get their partner's
  1839. 1:15:28attention or interest or a conversation
  1840. 1:15:30or show them something they were reading
  1841. 1:15:33and the cameras turned to the other
  1842. 1:15:35person and we recorded the response and
  1843. 1:15:39they either responded, you know, or, you
  1844. 1:15:42know, turned toward we called it or they
  1845. 1:15:45didn't respond at all turning away or
  1846. 1:15:47they responded irritably turning
  1847. 1:15:49against. And what Janney discovered was
  1848. 1:15:53that when you look back at the couples
  1849. 1:15:55who divorced 6 years earlier, their
  1850. 1:15:59average percent of turning toward their
  1851. 1:16:01partners' bids for connection was 33%.
  1852. 1:16:06And the couples who are still married
  1853. 1:16:08look six years earlier, their average is
  1854. 1:16:1186%.
  1855. 1:16:12>> Wow.
  1856. 1:16:13>> Rather than 33%. So these small moments
  1857. 1:16:16are really important. Plus, she also
  1858. 1:16:18discovered the secret to having a sense
  1859. 1:16:21of humor during conflict was having a
  1860. 1:16:24lot of history of turning toward
  1861. 1:16:27>> building an emotional bank account of
  1862. 1:16:29connecting,
  1863. 1:16:30>> right?
  1864. 1:16:31>> Then people had a sense of humor about
  1865. 1:16:32themselves during conflict.
  1866. 1:16:34>> I want to make sure that as you were
  1867. 1:16:36listening to John say that that you got
  1868. 1:16:39the very helpful distinction of the
  1869. 1:16:42three things that people do in those
  1870. 1:16:44micro moments. And obviously what we
  1871. 1:16:47want to learn to do, right,
  1872. 1:16:48>> is turn toward one another.
  1873. 1:16:50>> Right.
  1874. 1:16:51>> But the thing that a lot of people do is
  1875. 1:16:53you either turn away
  1876. 1:16:55>> or you turn against.
  1877. 1:16:57>> Right.
  1878. 1:16:58>> Right.
  1879. 1:16:58>> And I think it's a very useful tool to
  1880. 1:17:00ask yourself, am I turning against them
  1881. 1:17:03when they're trying to hold my hand or
  1882. 1:17:05engage in a conversation or tell about
  1883. 1:17:08their day? Am I turning away from them?
  1884. 1:17:11So what turning away means, a lot of
  1885. 1:17:14people misinterpret that. They think it
  1886. 1:17:16means, oh, you turn your body away. No,
  1887. 1:17:19it doesn't at all. It means you
  1888. 1:17:23completely ignore what they've said. Oh,
  1889. 1:17:26>> you ignore it.
  1890. 1:17:27>> So, [snorts] let's say I'm reading a
  1891. 1:17:29book and John calls to me from the
  1892. 1:17:32kitchen, Julie.
  1893. 1:17:35I ignore him. I keep reading the book.
  1894. 1:17:39He says again, "Honey, do you know where
  1895. 1:17:42the big fork is?"
  1896. 1:17:46I ignore him
  1897. 1:17:48as if he never said anything. That's
  1898. 1:17:51turning away.
  1899. 1:17:52>> Turning against
  1900. 1:17:55would be, "Would you stop interrupting
  1901. 1:17:58me? I'm trying to read."
  1902. 1:18:01>> That's the hostility you see that comes
  1903. 1:18:04in turning against.
  1904. 1:18:07>> Wow. They're really small moments, but
  1905. 1:18:10the probability that a person will rebid
  1906. 1:18:15>> after their partner's turned away is
  1907. 1:18:1822%.
  1908. 1:18:19>> Wow.
  1909. 1:18:20>> So only 22% of the time do they say,
  1910. 1:18:23"Honey, where's the fork?" Or, you know,
  1911. 1:18:26listen to this. They they kind of
  1912. 1:18:29crumple a little bit when their partner
  1913. 1:18:31turns away.
  1914. 1:18:32>> Well, of course.
  1915. 1:18:33>> Yeah.
  1916. 1:18:33>> You know what it reminds me of? You know
  1917. 1:18:36what a sea anemone looks like? You know,
  1918. 1:18:39it's this little circle of a of a being
  1919. 1:18:44in the water in the ocean that has
  1920. 1:18:46little tiny fingers and when it's
  1921. 1:18:49relaxed, all those fingers are spread
  1922. 1:18:52out towards the center of this little
  1923. 1:18:54circle.
  1924. 1:18:54>> Yeah. Like if you saw the movie Finding
  1925. 1:18:56Nemo, all the baby nose are in one. Yes.
  1926. 1:18:59>> Yeah. Exactly. Okay. So if you poke that
  1927. 1:19:04sea anemone
  1928. 1:19:06gently all those fingers pull back
  1929. 1:19:10>> and then very slowly it'll start
  1930. 1:19:13stretching stretching stretching
  1931. 1:19:16stretching again
  1932. 1:19:19let's say you poke again that c anemone
  1933. 1:19:22is not going to stretch out its fingers
  1934. 1:19:25it's going to hide
  1935. 1:19:27>> that's what happens
  1936. 1:19:28>> good image
  1937. 1:19:29>> that makes a ton of sense And I would
  1938. 1:19:31just love to have you speak directly to
  1939. 1:19:34the person who's been with us this whole
  1940. 1:19:36time because there's a lot that you have
  1941. 1:19:38shared. There are so many tools and
  1942. 1:19:40frameworks, things that you can put to
  1943. 1:19:42use right now and also things that you
  1944. 1:19:45can really reflect on in yourself cuz
  1945. 1:19:48you can't change them.
  1946. 1:19:51>> You can use these tools to connect more
  1947. 1:19:53deeply and to strengthen your
  1948. 1:19:56relationship, but ultimately you can't
  1949. 1:19:58change them. But a lot of what has
  1950. 1:20:02happened for me with your work is it's
  1951. 1:20:04made me understand the things that I'm
  1952. 1:20:08doing that I need to change that can
  1953. 1:20:11strengthen the relationship
  1954. 1:20:14>> and the things that I can proactively do
  1955. 1:20:17differently that build better
  1956. 1:20:19connection. And so I'd love to have you
  1957. 1:20:21just speak to the person directly. And
  1958. 1:20:24if they take everything to heart, but
  1959. 1:20:28they want to do one thing
  1960. 1:20:31right after they finish listening,
  1961. 1:20:34what's the most important action to take
  1962. 1:20:36today?
  1963. 1:20:37>> Well, I would say that [clears throat]
  1964. 1:20:41when you realize conflict has a goal,
  1965. 1:20:44which is mutual understanding.
  1966. 1:20:46And what you need to do is postpone
  1967. 1:20:49persuasion and problem solving until you
  1968. 1:20:53can really hear what your partner is
  1969. 1:20:56saying, what your partner feels, what
  1970. 1:20:59your partner needs, what your partner's
  1971. 1:21:01hopes are, and get that notebook out
  1972. 1:21:05slowly. Open it up. Slowly get your pen
  1973. 1:21:09out and take notes and listen. Because
  1974. 1:21:14when you do that, you realize your
  1975. 1:21:16partner is not your adversary. Your
  1976. 1:21:18partner is your ally at solving a
  1977. 1:21:21problem together. You you can be a team
  1978. 1:21:24that together is more powerful than
  1979. 1:21:27either person individually and you solve
  1980. 1:21:30that problem together. So buy a little
  1981. 1:21:32notebook and a pen and take notes.
  1982. 1:21:36Slowly get out your pen so you can wait
  1983. 1:21:39at least two beats before you respond.
  1984. 1:21:43Well, I cannot wait to listen to this
  1985. 1:21:45again with my husband Chris. Maybe it's
  1986. 1:21:48what we'll do on our to celebrate our
  1987. 1:21:4930th wedding anniversary. And I now know
  1988. 1:21:52what I'm going to get him.
  1989. 1:21:53>> I'm going to get him a little notebook.
  1990. 1:21:55Right. [laughter]
  1991. 1:21:56>> Right. That's a great idea.
  1992. 1:21:58>> And you know what?
  1993. 1:21:59>> And a pen. And a pen. And one of the
  1994. 1:22:02other things that I really loved about
  1995. 1:22:04being with you two is that you reminded
  1996. 1:22:07me of one of my favorite pieces of
  1997. 1:22:11advice and truths about relationships
  1998. 1:22:14that really go the distance and are
  1999. 1:22:16satisfying for both people. And I first
  2000. 1:22:20heard this from James Ston, but it's
  2001. 1:22:22just this idea that you're my favorite
  2002. 1:22:24person.
  2003. 1:22:25>> Mhm.
  2004. 1:22:25>> And being [clears throat] in the
  2005. 1:22:26presence of the two of you and
  2006. 1:22:29experiencing
  2007. 1:22:31in person your warmth towards each
  2008. 1:22:34other, your fondness towards each other,
  2009. 1:22:38your kindness towards one another, the
  2010. 1:22:41fun that you have as you are sitting
  2011. 1:22:46together.
  2012. 1:22:48It is the little things that are
  2013. 1:22:50available and right in front of us. And
  2014. 1:22:53I am so excited to get home to Chris
  2015. 1:22:56tonight in southern Vermont because I
  2016. 1:22:59feel rejuvenated in terms of just that
  2017. 1:23:02that what that energy between you two,
  2018. 1:23:05the warmth.
  2019. 1:23:06>> You know, Helen Fischer uh taught us
  2020. 1:23:09that being in love has no shelf life.
  2021. 1:23:13You can be in love for 35 years, 40
  2022. 1:23:16years, 50 years, and we are, you know,
  2023. 1:23:19and uh I feel enormous joy in the
  2024. 1:23:23morning when Julie's in my arms.
  2025. 1:23:27>> Every morning,
  2026. 1:23:28>> you are going to make me cry. The
  2027. 1:23:30Gottmans, [laughter] everybody, thank
  2028. 1:23:32you. Thank you. Thank you.
  2029. 1:23:34>> Thank you, Mel.
  2030. 1:23:36>> I just love you, too.
  2031. 1:23:38>> Thank you.
  2032. 1:23:38>> Thank you.
  2033. 1:23:40>> And thank you. You know, I told you at
  2034. 1:23:42the beginning of this episode you would
  2035. 1:23:44fall in love with the Gottman's. And
  2036. 1:23:45didn't you? I mean, how could you not? I
  2037. 1:23:48am so excited for everything that's
  2038. 1:23:49going to happen in your relationships
  2039. 1:23:51and in your life based on what you just
  2040. 1:23:53learned. Because the truth is, you
  2041. 1:23:55deserve love. You deserve connection.
  2042. 1:23:59You deserve respect and kindness. And
  2043. 1:24:01now you have researchbacked tools from
  2044. 1:24:04the worldrenowned Gottmans to use and to
  2045. 1:24:07share for the rest of your life. How
  2046. 1:24:10cool is that? And in case no one else
  2047. 1:24:12tells you today, as your friend, I
  2048. 1:24:14wanted to be sure to tell you that I
  2049. 1:24:16love you and I believe in you and I
  2050. 1:24:18believe in your ability to create a
  2051. 1:24:19better life. And the thing that's going
  2052. 1:24:21to make your life better is stronger and
  2053. 1:24:23more loving relationships. And now you
  2054. 1:24:26have everything you need to know, do,
  2055. 1:24:28and say to create them. So go do it. All
  2056. 1:24:31righty. I'll see you in the very next
  2057. 1:24:33episode. I'll welcome you in the moment
  2058. 1:24:35you hit play. All righty. Thank you for
  2059. 1:24:37watching all the way to the end here on
  2060. 1:24:39YouTube. The next video that you want to
  2061. 1:24:42check out, you're going to love this one
  2062. 1:24:43too, is this one.

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