Relationship Rx: Prescriptions for Lasting Love and Deeper Connection

by Jessica Griffin, Pepper Schwartz

Overview

Offers a prescription for restoring the struggling relationship back to health.

What if couples could take their relationship vitamins or medicine in order to prevent and treat problems in their relationships or restore their struggling relationship back to health? Here, two seasoned relationship experts address the top problems in relationships and provide simple strategies and exercises, grounded in relationship science, that couples can use to have the healthiest – and happiest – relationship of their lives.

The reader will benefit from discussions about research on effective communication strategies, adult attachment styles, cognitive-behavioral therapy techniques, and lessons learned from decades of relationship research – all presented in an easy to digest fashion, making Relationship Rx an easy pill to swallow. As Griffin and Schwartz tackle the major issues most couples face (or will inevitably face), they offer a tiered approach to mild, moderate, or severe relationship symptoms – each requiring various levels of intervention. The reader is introduced to three new couples in each chapter – all struggling to some degree in their marriages or long-term relationships. Each chapter concludes with a series of practical relationship exercises or techniques that couples can do in their own homes.

Any couple hoping to prevent or address those issues in their relationships that often derail couples will find a relatable resource here and easy-to-implement strategies for restoring even the most challenges relationships.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781538165737
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	02/13/2023
Pages:	240
Sales rank:	1,025,457
Product dimensions:	5.70(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Jessica L. Griffin, PsyD, is professor of Psychiatry and Pediatrics at the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, where she has been a faculty member since 2006. Griffin has been an expert and consultant on several television docuseries about relationships, marriage and divorce on A&E’s Lifetime Television network including: Seven Year Switch, Married at First Sight, Honeymoon Island, and Happily Ever After. She has a private consulting and coaching business and is the CEO of LoveBuilder, which provides educational online courses to couples, singles, and parents. Dr. Jessica resides in Massachusetts.

Pepper Schwartz, PhD, is a highly acclaimed relationship and sexuality professional. She is a professor in the Sociology Department at the University of Washington in Seattle, where she has created the Pepper Schwartz fellowship on intimate relationships and sexuality. She is also on the advisory board of the University of Minnesota Medical School’s Program in Human Sexuality where they have created an endowed professorship in her name: the Pepper Schwartz Professorship on Sexuality and Life Cycle Aging. She is the only original expert on Married at First Sight and has remained with the franchise since Season One. She resides outside of Seattle.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements.....................................................................................................................XX

Introduction.................................................................................................................................XX

1. Fear of Change................................................................................................................1
2. Trust................................................................................................................................20
3. Emotional Intimacy.........................................................................................................50
4. Sex and Attraction.............. ............................................................................................73
5. Unfulfilled Needs and Unmet Expectations....................................................................92
6. Boredom..........................................................................................................................108
7. Disrespect and Contempt................................................................................................126
8. Household Responsibilities.............................................................................................149
9. Money and Finances.......................................................................................................171
10. Friends and Family........................................................................................................188
11. Children and Parenting...................................................................................................208

Conclusions.................................................................................................................................228

Bibliography................................................................................................................................

Editorial Reviews

Relationships - even the most excellent ones - are often messy with maladies, and Relationship RX provides practical, proven, and insightful support from renowned specialists Griffin and Schwartz to help couples live enriched lives together through thick and thin. Based on real world common couple challenges, this book provides use-it-today guidance to help relationships in all stages of development be more fulfilling, sustainable, and alive. It is a resource I recommend to all my patients who are looking to improve intimacy and connection in their relationship."

Serena McKenzie

This book authored by two outstanding experts offers hope and practical help for couples dealing with troubled relationships and trying to find authentic and meaningful intimacy. A useful guide for anyone searching for answers and a great companion to the work of a couple's therapist.

Eli Coleman

When you consider all the issues that affect relationships (trust, money problems, household responsibilities, parenting, sexual and emotional intimacy, change, boredom, family), it’s a wonder that anyone stays married. We all have relationship problems, say psychologist Griffin and sociologist Schwartz. What makes the difference is the willingness of the partners to work on communication skills, childhood baggage, and attachment styles to preserve their union. Identifying 11 basic relationship concerns (one per chapter), the authors begin with ground rules and then offer case studies from three couples: one needing minor tweaks (a relationship vitamin), one struggling (relationship medicine), and one nearly fatal (relationship CPR), to suggest possible solutions to their conflicts. Detailed exercises similar to those used in counseling sessions, including role playing, journaling, and structured discussions, are described, and the two doctors demonstrate how these strategies improve the couples’ outcomes. The goal here is to head off problems before they reach the CPR stage, when counseling will be necessary. Readers experiencing these problems will be reassured and guided by Griffin's and Schwartz's practical suggestions.

Booklist

This is an amazing book, wise and extremely useful. It is a must read for anyone who wants to have emotionally satisfying relationships. Buy this book! It will change your life.

John Gottman

Dr. Pepper and Dr. Jessica have made an outstanding contribution to relationship health in this book. Relationship Rx is a beautiful blend of head and heart. They have managed to provide a respectable amount of scientific data and yet have given the reader fun and digestible ways of finding practical solutions to serious relationship issues. Whether discovering your own relationship attachment style or treading the murky waters of parenting, they have given actionable steps to find hope. Their narratives of couple conflicts and resolutions will prove an unquestionable benefit to anyone who is serious about finding help with any relationship they are experiencing.

Cal Roberson

Need a good relationship Rx? Here’s your ticket to a longer, richer and deeper partnership. Griffen and Schwartz have given us a pile of wise and original ideas on how to build and keep life’s greatest prize—a happy partnership.

Helen Fisher