RelateWell with Dr. Rick Marks

Dr. Rick and Angelia discuss the reasons folks stay in relationships that are unhealthy or that they feel are over, where one has lost that lovin feeling, where one has lost interest.  

Angelia and Dr. Rick tackle the subject of what healthy and unhealthy fighting looks like in a relationship, and what are healthy reasons to fight and some unhealthy reasons.

Dr. Rick and Angelia continue to discuss emotional abuse and gaslighting: how to recognize it, and how to handle it.  They also discuss the science of patience and what brain research reveals about living a life with patience.  1 Corinthians 13 also indicates that patience is one of the attributes of love.  When we choose to live with patience we choose to live with love and goodwill.  

Dr. Rick and Angelia take on the topic of living life through kindness.  Kindness is the second trait of love mentioned in 1 Corinthians 13 and brain research on kindness has much positive to say about living this way.

There are five traits to human flourishing and these have been studied by Harvard Univeristy and many others.  These five traits also relate to living life abundantly.  Dr. Rick and Angelia discuss these five traits and how they lead anyone to a life that flourishes.

Being physically abused is one thing; it is pretty evident when it happens.  But what does emotional abuse look like?  Dr. Rick and Angelia discuss the traits of emotional abuse and how these affect the abused and how one can escape it.

Dr. Rick and Angelia discuss the role of spirituality and it's impact on healthy loving and living.  Looking at current research they discuss the difference between religion and spirituality and the implications of the four Greek words that define love.

Current culture does not clearly define the status of a relationship.  Are we dating?  going out?  Friends with benefits?  hanging out?  What does research reveal about the lack of clarity around clearly defining a relationship status on one's emotional and relational health.

Dr. Rick and Angelia discuss the meaning of Valentines day and delve into the most important question you can ask yourself in regards to your relationships.  This leads to a discussion of the emotional stages of development.

John Gottman's work is brilliant on healthy and mature and loving marriages.  He identified wheat he calls, The Four Horseman of Apocalypse.  These four things predict divorce 93%.  Dr. Rick and Angelia discuss these four traits and how to avoid them.

Forgiving others is a matter of the strong, not the weak.  It takes an attitude of love, humility, self-care in order to forgive.  Forgiveness sets the heart of the offended free.  In this episode, Dr. Rick and Angelia talk about what forgiveness is, what it is not, and how to forgive so one's own heart can be set free.

Being grateful and appreciative is a skill one can learn.  Brain research reveals that when one is in a state of appreciation or gratitude, it is very challenging to be sad, angry, resentful and bitter.  Dr. Rick and Angelia discuss the 8 aspects of appreciation so listeners can gain a greater understanding of the power of appreciation.

There is a mountain of evidence regarding the positive effects of healthy and loving father involvement in the life of children.  Dr. Rick and Angelia talk about the research around healthy fatherhood, its effects on children, and the traits of healthy fathers.

All humans deserve to have their inherent dignity and value respected.  Yet, many relationship fails are fails in dignity, treating others without dignity or violating one's own dignity.  Dr. Rick and Angelia talks about various violations of dignity.

How do you identify a toxic relationship and what can you do about it?  

Dr. Rick takes  deeper dive into what he calls the Four Protectors of US: Goodwill, Respect, Humility, and Empathy.  

Dr. Rick and co-host Angelia Savage discuss Dr. Rick's journey from a broken home to a life of fulfillment and relational maturity.  Dr. Rick discusses the impact the abuse had on his personal life and early marriage and the four traits he developed his life around that turned his life from a wounded soul to a person living fully in the present and abundantly.