Communication & Mutual Problems

I'm a firm believer that *most* contention comes from miscommunication. Often times, people do not speak their mind, missing opportunities for them to share their true feelings about a situation. When this happens, the other person is not acting with a complete knowledge of the situation at hand, leaving room for feelings to get hurt and contention to occur.

During class discussion this week, we learned just how important it is to communicate; especially with our spouses and family.

I've learned this lesson extremely well with my wife. When we first started dating, whenever there was a problem between the two of us, she would shut down and refuse to tell me her true feelings and what was upsetting her. It was incredibly difficult to solve problems that would arise because I did not know what her thoughts and feelings were.

As we have been together longer and are now married, thankfully our communication problems have greatly decreased! She is much better at telling me (quickly, too!) her feelings and I have become much better about listening.