LoveLife Podcast

You’ve probably heard it said that couples that pray together stay together.  Is there any truth to this?  Religion can play a role in helping couples navigate their relationship or it can lead to fractious quarrels and disunion.  Alvean and Doug discuss the pitfalls and the promises that a faith based relationship can offer in this episode.  For a full transcript, click here: LL34-Couples T...

It happens, especially if a couple have been together for a long time.  The passion seems to be less and less common as everyday life with all its stresses and challenges get in the way.  In this episode, Alvean and Doug talk about ways in which couples can renew the patterns and behaviors that ignited their passion in the first place.  For a complete written transcript, click here: LL33-How to Br...

Along with differences in libido Money is one of the chief issues that couples tend to argue about in the course of their relationship.  In this episode Alvean and Doug reveal the underlying causes and more importantly strategies for avoiding the consequences.  For a full transcript, click here: LL32-Why Do couples Quarrel About Money?

Be honest, flirting is fun–even thrilling for some, but it can cross a line into something much less innocent.  In this episode, Alvean and Doug explore the motivations behind flirting and the ground rules that can keep it light hearted and positive without causing harm or crossing over into emotional or physical cheating.  For a complete transcript, click here: LL31-Why Men and Women Flirt

A lot of books have been written on this subject but many deal only with superficial themes.  Alvean and Doug go deeper to help listeners understand some of the fundamental truths about how different genders process thoughts and emotions, and how that knowledge can help listeners avoid the usual misunderstandings that can accompany relationships.  For more and a full transcript, click here: LL30-H...

In this episode, Alvean and Doug take on a familiar subject–why otherwise loving couples quarrel.  The issues are relatively common, arising from differences over money, divisions of labor, intimacy, and in some cases parenting. They offer some practical suggestions about how to mediate such differences and resolve the underlying factors that lead to dis harmony in relationships.  For a full...

It is said that time heals all wounds but is that true or is it love?  In this episode, Alvean and Doug talk about the healing properties of loving and being loved.  For a complete transcript, click here: LL28-Can Love Heal?

Torn between two lovers–its the popular song that this episode reflects.  Is it possible to be in love, honest and true love with two different people at the same time?  You don’t have to wait for the big reveal, the answer is no, but you’ll want to listen to Alvean and Doug to find out why.  Fot a full transcript, click here: LL27-Can you love two people equally?

Surely you have met someone like this–a person who believes they are the center of the universe and nothing you or anyone else says or does can dissuade them of this opinion. Well fasten your seatbelts–Alvean and Doug discuss the best way to address those who behave this way and how best to protect yourself from their outsized egos.  For more and a complete transcript, click here: LL26...

Loneliness seems epidemic these days–certainly among younger generations. In this episode, Alvean and Doug talk about some positive aspects of being alone, and how one can use that time to renew self love and affirm one’s feelings about others.  For a full transcript, click here: LL25-Savoring Loneliness

Have you ever heard this expression–possibly from kids but sometimes said in another way it is the sentiment behind adult push back. In this episode, Alvean and Doug dissect the meaning behind that expression and why it is an important indicator of control issues that may be working behind the scenes.  For a full transcript, click here: LL24-You’re not the Boss of Me

Conventional wisdom suggests the answer is yes, but is that really true.  In this episode Alvean and Doug take on the question with some surprising insights int what makes for a lively and rich relationship.  For a full transcript, click here:  LL23-Do Opposites Attract

Arguably, jealousy is one of the most toxic emotions, one that can destroy any relationship.  In this episode, Alvean and Doug talk about its roots in insecurity and poor ideation of the self.  They offer some thoughts about how best to counter it and create an environment that in wholesome, and transparent.  For more click here: LL22-Jealousy

Can you go back?  Do failed relationship work on a second try or is the damage too profound to ever repair.  In this episode, Alvean and Doug offer their thoughts on the pitfalls and possible benefits of a second chance.  For a full transcript, click here: LL21-Getting Back with Your Ex

Maybe you have had the experience or perhaps heard about such situations.  When a relationship ends it is often more than painful emotionally, some partners go that extra step to inflict even more pain, emotionally, financially, or in other ways.  How does one handle such a situation and even more pertinent, how does one avoid it in the first place.  Listen to what Alvean and Doug have to say in t...

If there is a human trait that matters more and least understood, it is empathy.  In this episode, Alvean and Doug talk about why empathy is at the core of all durable relationships, ib life, work and love.  For a full transcript of this episode, click here: LL19-Empathy is a Lost Virtue

It takes a secure person to open themselves up to others but it is only through vulnerability that true emotional connection can flourish.  Alvean and Doug explore this paradox in this episode and offer vivid examples from their own experience.  For a full transcript, click here: LL18-Vulnerability

Philosophers and everyday men and women alike wrestle with the question, what is my purpose in life?  What actually matters–and how do we discover the answers?  In this episode, Alvean and Doug take on these pithy questions and offere their own experience and insights in response.  For a full transcript, click here: LL17

It sounds counter-intuitive but Alvean and Doug would tell you that some of our most painful experiences are also incredibly important teaching moments.  Although no one seeks out suffering, especially where relationships are concerned, emotional pain, loss and grief take us to places where we can look at ourselves and our lives in a more objective perspective and emerge–either through one&#...

Can we truly deceive ourselves?  In this episode, Alvean and Doug talk about the ways we obfuscate, pretend and misdirect our intuition and intellect when matters of the heart are concerned. For a full transcript, click here: LL15

Some have said that a broken heart is worse than any physical pain, and for many it is one of if not the hardest thing they may face at a young age. Alvean and Doug discuss the ways we mend and build on a stronger foundation following a difficult passage such as this. For more and a full transcript, click here: LL14

As a followup to last week’s episode, Alvean and Doug take on the thorny question, can anyone prevent their partner from cheating?   Alvean unfolds her now famous dry grass analogy to explain how relationship fare when they are not regularly tended.  And Doug tells a story about a marriage that foundered through inattention. For a full transcript, click here: LL13

It may be the hardest test of a relationship, when one partner is unfaithful to the other.  In this episode, Alvean and Doug discuss how to move on –whether the relationship is at its end or otherwise and how to know the difference between someone that cheated (and why) and someone who is a cheater.  For more, and a complete transcript, click here: LL12

Doug & Alvean share stories about the best advice they ever received regarding relationships.  For a full transcript, click here: LL11

A lot has been written and said about interracial or inter-religious relationships and the challenges they pose, but really these differences are only a part of what Alvean and Doug describe as cross cultural relationships because they involve more than race or faith, but a matrix of language, behavior social and cultural norms that may be wide or narrowly different between partners. In this episo...