This week's podcast discusses the important ideas of acceptance and self-compassion towards the anxiously attached. These practices open space for new neural pathways to be created and in turn new behaviors to be engaged in. Listen to this week's podcast to see what this looks like. It's not easy, but it is worth it. 

Fear and rejection are at the heart of those with anxious attachment styles. Any perceived threat to the relationship is devastating. The anxiously attached person appears to focus on these perceived threats as a way to manage their fear of abandonment. The anxious attacher is often angry, negative and self-critical to cope with their greatest fears in relationships. It can be hard to connect with these behaviors. This week, I talk about this facet of attachment in relationships. 

What's Your Attachment Style - Debbi Carberry Blog

The Attachment Project

Years of research show that experiences we have in childhood interact with our neurons and our genetics to wire our brains in specific ways. Our experiences with attachment to our caregivers are significant because of the attachment circuitry in our brains.  Listen to this week's podcast to learn a bit about this topic and how increasing our awareness of this topic can improve our relationships. 

Attachment styles generally exist on a spectrum. Insecurely attached people can have both anxious and avoidant patterns at different times. This week, I'll talk about anxious insecure type. As the name suggests, people with this style tend to show the stress they feel in relationships through anxiety or anxious behaviors. 

Learning about and understanding attachment theory and your attachment style makes it possible to improve, heal and repair complex or troubled relationships. There are four basic attachment styles: dismissive-avoidant, fearful-avoidant, anxious and secure. Listen to this week's podcast for a dive into the research, the theory, and why this is important for you to comprehend. 

I am really passionate about this topic. I think the impact of emotional validation is much bigger than we believe. I hope that those who don't understand what validation means can be edified. I hope those who can't or don't want to validate will learn its benefits and change their minds. Listen to this week's podcast. Share it with your friends and partners to learn a great deal about emotional validation 

Anger? Hubris? Self-righteousness? Pride? Hubris? Humility? In Brene Brown's Atlas of the Heart (see link below) she talks helps us know how these emotions show up at certain times of our lives. I think these words and her description(s) help us see how we feel when we feel wrong, are wrong, admit we are wrong or are wronged ourselves.

Listen to this week's podcast for encouragement to be personally vulnerable and increase your awareness of how these feelings impact your ability to be a better person within the context of relationships. 

Atlas of the Heart

What does science say about people and being wrong? What is your history with mistakes? What messages did you learn about what it meant to do something "wrong?" What do you make being "right" mean? Listen to this week's podcast to see how the answers to these questions can decrease your relationship conflict, increase your life satisfaction, and unburden you of your misapprehension that being right makes people respect you. 

When was the last time you openly admitted you were wrong about something? Maybe you reacted angrily toward your toddler about something that did not warrant it. Perhaps you started a fight with your partner, realized it was petty, but kept it going because you didn't know how to admit you were tired, or cranky, or wrong about what you thought was going on. Being wrong, recognizing we are wrong, and admitting we are wrong can feel very vulnerable and scary. Why is that? Listen to this week's podcast for some understanding and insight into this important topic. Learning how to be wrong and admit it is critical for happy, healthy relationships. It's also necessary to reduce cognitive dissonance and create psychological flexibility that creates of sense of peace and calm in the chaos. 

A Short History of Nearly Everything

Listen to this week's podcast to hear the good things that we have been able to savor this week. Some are big and some are small, but that all have the same effect. This practice can increase our overall sense of well-being. Also, check out the music, mindfulness, and yoga links that helped me feel good this week. 

Yoga Joy | Full Body Vinyasa Flow | Yoga With Adriene

Jaeger & Reid

The Path of Life (Insight Timer)