Monarch for Love

If you’ve ever thought, “I know we love each other, but it doesn’t feel like love anymore,” this episode is for you. Michelle Hays unpacks the real reasons marriages feel loveless, from emotional neglect to negative assumptions and unspoken resentment. You’ll hear why loveless does not mean hopeless, and how rebuilding emotional safety and connection can quietly revive love again.🔗 Website: www.m...

A handwritten love letter might seem old-fashioned, but its impact is timeless. In this episode, we explore why putting your feelings into words can heal resentments, deepen emotional safety, and bring back the softness couples often lose along the way. I’ll share how to write a letter that actually lands, what to say when you don’t know where to start, and why this simple act can change the entir...

We start each year full of hope, and somehow in a blink of an eye we fall into routine and distance. In this episode, Michelle Hays shares a simple but powerful truth. Love does not stay alive on autopilot. It is built through small, daily decisions to listen, soften, and stay connected. If your marriage feels good but fragile, or distant but not broken, this conversation will gently remind you wh...

This holiday season, we’re talking about the one gift that changes everything in a marriage — forgiveness. Not the “pretend it didn’t hurt” kind, but the kind that softens resentment, quiets scorekeeping, and makes room for joy again. In this episode, I share why couples secretly keep “naughty lists,” how those quiet tallies slowly chip away at connection, and why choosing forgiveness can turn eve...

A thriving marriage isn’t built on luck, chemistry, or time together. It’s built on five core pillars that determine how safe you feel, how seen you feel, and how deeply connected you become. In this episode, I walk you through the five foundations every strong marriage is built on, why they matter, and how to strengthen each one in simple, doable ways. If your marriage feels good but could feel g...

Every strong marriage has a rhythm. In this episode, I break down the eight simple habits happy couples practice consistently to stay connected, calm, curious, and close. These aren’t grand gestures. They’re everyday choices that keep love alive, resentment low, and emotional safety high. If you want your marriage to feel lighter and more loving, this is where you start.🔗 Website: www.monarchforl...

Your spouse is sending signals all day long. The question is… are you catching them or walking right past them? Today we dig into bids for attention, why they matter, and how responding to them can completely change the emotional temperature of your marriage.🔗 Website: www.monarchforlove.com 📘 Book: www.awakenedheartsbook.com Instagram: @Monarchforlove TikTok @monarchforlove

Ever notice how a marriage can be full of routines and plans yet feel oddly empty? Like you love each other… but the spark, the pull toward the future, has gone a little dim? This week's episode is a gentle reminder that love needs more than commitment and calendars... it needs a horizon. Shared dreams. Tiny sparks of “someday” that make the “everyday” feel meaningful again. If your marriage feels...

Ever notice how one sentence can spark an argument and not because of what was said, but how it was heard? In this short episode, we unpack how tone, timing, and emotional state can twist even kind intentions into conflict. You’ll learn how to slow the moment, mirror what your partner says, and hear beneath the words, past the defenses, into the heart. Because most love isn’t lost in the speaking…...

In this honest and eye-opening conversation, I sit down with Dr. Marianna Martinasevic, a psychiatrist with over 25 years of experience  to talk about something most people whisper about: medication for anxiety, depression, and emotional health. We unpack the biggest misconceptions around “needing meds,” the shame that too often surrounds taking them, and the truth about side effects that soc...

Struggling couples often wonder if it’s time to quit or if there’s still something worth fighting for. In this gentle yet practical episode, Michelle Hays walks you through four powerful conversations designed to bring clarity: naming the fears you avoid, exploring changing needs, releasing past hurts, and reimagining your future together. These talks won’t solve everything overnight, but they wil...

He needs space to feel safe. She needs connection to feel safe. No wonder you keep missing each other. In this episode, Michelle Hays explores the nervous system wiring that fuels the chase-and-withdraw dance so many couples know too well. With real-life insight and practical tools, you’ll learn how to stop making each other the enemy and start finding connection even when your bodies speak differ...

Love without safety is love you have to perform for—and it will leave you lonely, even in the same room with your partner. In this episode of Monarch for Love, Michelle Hayes unpacks why emotional safety has become the modern must-have in marriage, what it really looks like, and three simple ways to start building it today.🔗 Website: www.monarchforlove.com 📘 Book: www.awakenedheartsbook.com Inst...

What happens when you love your partner but don’t feel attracted to them anymore? In this episode of Monarch for Love, we peel back the shame and silence around fading desire. You’ll discover why loss of attraction is often about disconnection, not looks, and how rebuilding emotional safety, honesty, and curiosity can reignite intimacy. 🔗 Website: www.monarchforlove.com 📘 Book: www.awakenedheart...

In this week's episode, we are unpacking one of the most common myths I hear from couples: “We just fell out of love.” The truth? Love doesn’t vanish—it fades when we stop choosing it. I’ll share how unmet needs, unspoken resentments, and quiet disconnection slowly erode intimacy, and how the belief that love should always “feel” magical keeps us stuck. You’ll hear parts of my own journey, the mis...

In this week's episode, I speak to the woman standing at the edge—the one who wonders if walking away is the only way forward. Before you make that decision, I invite you to pause and ask yourself four life-altering questions. I’ll share pieces of my own story—multiple marriages, mistakes, and hard-won lessons—so you can see that leaving isn’t always the freedom it promises. If your heart is achin...

In this heartfelt episode of Monarch for Love, I sit down with Psychiatrist, Dr. Mariana Martinasevic, to explore how alcohol and other substances can quietly reshape the fabric of a marriage. From social drinking to dependence, substance use often creates emotional distance, hidden stress, and unspoken blame between partners. Together, we unpack when “use” becomes “abuse,” the toll it takes on in...

In this week’s episode, we’re naming something couples rarely admit out loud—feeling lonely in marriage. You said “I do,” you built a life together, and yet sometimes it feels like you’re miles apart under the same roof. Loneliness doesn’t mean your marriage is broken; it’s a signal that something needs attention. We unpack why loneliness sneaks into relationships—unspoken needs, distractions, fea...

In this week’s episode, I’m stepping into a season many couples both dread and quietly anticipate—the empty nest. After decades of parenting, the kids are gone, the routines vanish, and the house suddenly feels too quiet. It’s a season that can stir grief, relief, confusion, and the unsettling question: What’s next for us? I will be sharing personal stories, practical steps, and simple rituals to...

Think sexy means lingerie and candlelight? Think again. In this feel-good episode, Michelle Hays and positivity powerhouse Instagram sensation Kelli Butterfly spill the tea on how playfulness, laughter, and choosing joy can supercharge your relationship. From cranky funks to contagious fun, we’re diving into why your energy matters more than your outfit—and how a little optimism can heat things up...

In this heartfelt episode of Monarch for Love, host Michelle Hays gets personal and real about a common but often unnoticed relationship trap—the stories we tell ourselves. Whether it’s “He doesn’t care,” or “She never listens,” these inner narratives shape how we feel and respond in our marriage—but they’re not always true. Michelle shares candid examples from her own marriage, walks you through...

In this empowering episode of Monarch for Love, Michelle sits down with Bradley Rausch, host of the Redefining Growth podcast, to explore what it really takes to move from emotional overwhelm to intentional change—especially in relationships. Bradley shares his signature frameworks for navigating life’s hardest moments, including the 3A’s of growth: Awareness, Acceptance, and Adaptability, and his...

Let’s face it—talking about sex in marriage can feel awkward, vulnerable, and even risky. But avoiding the topic only creates distance. In this heartfelt episode, Michelle Hays gets real about the fears, miscommunications, and silent stories we often carry around intimacy. She shares her own personal journey with initiating these conversations, and offers practical, compassionate ways to start saf...

In this lighthearted yet deeply insightful episode, Michelle Hays shares a personal story that every couple can relate to—when one partner needs to process out loud and the other retreats into silence. Through her real-life example with her husband Brian, Michelle unpacks the differences between internal and external processors, and how those differences can either create emotional distance or dee...

Are your thoughts heavy with resentment? Are you withholding forgiveness? In this week's episode, Michelle Hays talks about how forgiveness lifts the weight and brings hearts back together. Hurting each other is inevitable—but forgiveness is the bridge that reconnects our hearts and releases the heavy burden of resentment. Michelle explores how true forgiveness creates space for healing, growth, a...