Introduction to Family and Relationship Issues

Welcome to our Family and Relationship Issues topic center. Whoever we are, we are all very much shaped by those who raised us, our parents and/or caregivers. We are the product of human relationships, and most of us spend our days within the context of relationships with other people. We need other people to be close to us in our lives, or we tend to get sick. Who we are is very much a function of where we have come from, and who we surround ourselves with.
Despite their vital importance in our lives, relationships can be very difficult to manage. We expect our intimate partners to provide for many of our needs, but often find that differing expectations, frustration, and a need to be right create conditions for conflict and erosion of intimacy. Angels though they may be, our children test us for weaknesses and we don't always pass. Our adult parents grow older and require care, placing a burden on our other responsibilities. A diverse set of communicati...More
Fast Facts: Learn! Fast!
What are healthy communication skills that should be used in relationships with others?
- Assertive communication is respectful, direct, honest, open, non-threatening and non-defensive. It is not demanding, aggressive, or manipulative.
- Understanding the emotional side of conversations can cause behavior to shift.
- Trust and affection are the glue that hold couples together. Healthy partners communicate these positive feelings towards each other via words and gestures in a cyclical manner that breeds more positive communication.
- Knowing more about how to communicate clearly and with sensitivity can help you to avoid problems before they start.
What are effective conflict resolution skills that should be used in relationships with others?
- It’s normal to have conflict in relationships, but resolving disagreements in a healthy way creates understanding and brings couples closer together.
- Learn the 3 most common and ineffective ways conflict is handled in intimate relationships and how to better handle it.
- Discover 4 strategies will help couples and families balance the needs of others with their own, and make the holiday season more enjoyable for all.
- In your quest as a parent to help your child understand the difference between good and bad, right and wrong and what it means to be respectful to others, there will inevitably be times when your child resists or you miscommunicate.
- Repairing damage while disagreeing with your partner can require learning new habits and skills.
- Whether in a marriage, between parents and children, or among friends, conflict is an inevitable part of any ongoing relationship and the question isn't if there will be conflict but how you will navigate the conflict when it occurs. Here are three skills you can practice to enhance your conflict-resolution and two to avoid.
- People who remarry find themselves blending two sets of families from former marriages and it's common to find a wife or husband complaining that their new spouse seems to love their biological children more than their new spouse.
News Articles
Cost of Having Baby Puts Many U.S. Families at 'Financial Risk'
Bringing home a baby should be an exciting and blissful time, but for many new parents, colossal out-of-pocket costs for pregnancy and delivery take the joy out of this milestone. More...
Gene Tests Often Reveal Unknown Relatives
Who hasn't had the urge to trace their roots by buying consumer genetic testing kits? But in a new report, researchers warn that you may come across some unexpected, and potentially troubling, information if you discover relatives this way. More...
Severe Illness in Children Brings Hardship for Families
When a sick child spends time in the intensive care unit, the impact lasts even after the hospital stay is over. More...
Severe Illness in a Child Takes Big Toll on Parents, Siblings: Study
When a child has severe health problems, the suffering often extends to the entire family, new research finds. More...
For Many, Holiday Joy Is Shadowed by COVID Fears: Poll
Stress about the COVID-19 pandemic may be eclipsing holiday joy for many older Americans, a new poll reveals. More...
12 MoreAHA News: The Pandemic Made It Hard to Stay Connected. Here's How to Reestablish Healthy Relationships.
It may seem challenging after so many months of distancing to reestablish relationships with family and friends -- and even co-workers as offices reopen. But experts say it's important for your mental and physical health. More...
As Holidays Return to Normal, Here's How to De-Stress
A return to a more normal holiday season may also mean higher stress levels, so an expert offers some coping tips. More...
AHA News: Holiday Visits, Even With Vaccines, Are a Balancing Act for Families
Experts say the key to handling them lies in a combination of understanding risks and benefits, accepting that everyone has different priorities and talking openly about what matters most. More...
Grandmother's Brain In Sync With Her Grandkids': Study
Grandmothers can have a strong bond with the little children in their families -- and the connection even shows up on brain scans, researchers say. More...
Still Feeling Nervous About Holiday Gatherings? Survey Finds You're Not Alone
Researchers from Ohio State University's Wexner Medical Center discovered that nearly three-fourths plan to celebrate only with household members, and 46% would require unvaccinated guests to test negative for COVID-19. More...
Over 140,000 U.S. Children Have Lost a Caregiver to COVID-19
It is an excruciating statistic: One in every four COVID-19 deaths in the United States leaves a child without a parent or other caregiver, researchers report. More...
Witnessing Abuse of a Sibling Can Traumatize a Child
Seeing a parent abuse a sibling can be as traumatizing as watching a parent hurt another parent, a new study finds. More...
Pandemic Changed Families' Eating Habits, for Good and Bad: Poll
Over the past year and a half, the coronavirus pandemic has remade so much of everyday life, including the foods families eat. More...
1.5 Million Kids Worldwide Lost Parent or Other Caregiver to COVID-19
In yet another finding that illustrates the tragic toll the pandemic has taken on families around the world, a new study shows that 1.5 million children have lost a parent, grandparent or other caregiver to COVID-19. More...
Friends, Family Key to Turning a 'No' on Vaccination to a 'Yes'
Nothing sways a vaccine-hesitant person more than a word with a family member, friend or their own doctor, a new Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) poll reveals. More...
'Boomerang Kids': When an Adult Child Moves Back Home
It's a scenario fraught with potential conflict: Moving back home as an adult can be tough -- on both the grown children and their parents. More...
Frozen Donor Eggs May Lead to Fewer Births Than Fresh Ones
But statistics might not tell full story, experts say. More...
Resources
Articles
- Introduction to Family & Relationship Issues
- Healthy Communication Skills
- Effective Conflict Resolution Skills
- Skills and Spills Along the Path of Relational Conflict
- Navigating Different Types of Conflict Between Parents and Children
- Get Through the Holidays with Humor and Grace: Four Strategies for Couples and Families
- The Challenge of Mixed or Blended Families
- Dealing Constructively With Conflict in an Intimate Relationship
- 24 Tips for Conflict Resolution in an Intimate Relationship
- Repairing Damage to an Intimate Relationship While Having Conflict
News
- Cost of Having Baby Puts Many U.S. Families at 'Financial Risk'
- Gene Tests Often Reveal Unknown Relatives
- Severe Illness in Children Brings Hardship for Families
- Severe Illness in a Child Takes Big Toll on Parents, Siblings: Study
- For Many, Holiday Joy Is Shadowed by COVID Fears: Poll
- AHA News: The Pandemic Made It Hard to Stay Connected. Here's How to Reestablish Healthy Relationships.
- As Holidays Return to Normal, Here's How to De-Stress
- AHA News: Holiday Visits, Even With Vaccines, Are a Balancing Act for Families
- Grandmother's Brain In Sync With Her Grandkids': Study
- Still Feeling Nervous About Holiday Gatherings? Survey Finds You're Not Alone
- 7 more
- Over 140,000 U.S. Children Have Lost a Caregiver to COVID-19
- Witnessing Abuse of a Sibling Can Traumatize a Child
- Pandemic Changed Families' Eating Habits, for Good and Bad: Poll
- 1.5 Million Kids Worldwide Lost Parent or Other Caregiver to COVID-19
- Friends, Family Key to Turning a 'No' on Vaccination to a 'Yes'
- 'Boomerang Kids': When an Adult Child Moves Back Home
- Frozen Donor Eggs May Lead to Fewer Births Than Fresh Ones
Questions and Answers
- Personality Disorder or Just a Horrible Person
- Husband Jealous of my Friends and Family
- Is it Just a Name?!
- She's Lied About Everything
- My Family is Ruining my Relationship With my Boyfriend
- What Is Wrong With Me ?
- My Boyfriend's Children Won't Accept Me....
- Does my Boyfriend Have Feelings For His Ex Wife?
- I Have Bulimia
- Arranged Marriage
- 225 more
- When is Enough, Enough?
- Breaking Up
- Soon to be 15 Year Old Step Daughter Who is Physically Abusive to Family Members
- I Have Everything I Ever Wanted. Why am I so Miserable?
- Should I Stay or Should I Go?
- Wife's Behavior
- Step-Daughter is Deliberately Abusive
- Is my Sister a Pathological Liar?
- Lost in Limbo
- 19 Year Old Daughter
- Need Help in Building the Bridges
- Lack of Affection and Intimacy
- Is He Seeing Someone?
- Marriage Question
- Respect + Anger Managment
- My Husband With Daughter......
- Resentment-Controlling Wife/Passive-Agressive Husband
- Getting Married, Stepsons With Awful Tempers
- Adult Son Interferes with Our Relationship
- Co-Dependent Mother
- Can My Marriage Be Saved?
- On and Off Relationship For Almost 10yrs
- I Am Tired of Marriage
- I'm His 2nd Wife. Am I Destined to Play Second Fiddle to His daughter Forever?
- How do I Get my Husband to the Psychiatrist?
- Is it Inappropriate to Call my Daughter...
- Trying to Save 37 Years of Marriage With My Bipolar Husband
- Alcoholism and Family
- Bipolar Obsessive Thoughts and False Memories
- Crazy Mother In Law Ruining Our Mental Health and Relationship
- Caught In The Middle Caring For Elderly Parent
- I am a Newlywed and Need Help
- Husband's Relationship With His Children
- Substance Abuse
- Chronically Ill Non-Compliant 19 Year Old
- Child With Possible Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD)
- Obsession or Excuse
- The Marriage Corner: How Can I Move Past This?
- The Marriage Corner: Do You Think my Marriage Can be Repaired?
- I am Only 26 Years Old
- My Boyfriend Saved a Picture of a Girl he Slept With in Case we Split up?
- Adoptive Mother of 3 Children - SunFlower
- How to Handle my Mothers State of Mind?
- Joyless
- Should I Fight For My Marriage?
- Homesick and Feeling Stuck.
- Why Does My Wife's Old Boyfriend Bother Me?
- How do We Get Her to Accept Us as Part of The Family?
- Another Woman
- Boyfriends Daughter
- How do I Cope With a Parent Who is Trying to Ruin me?
- Worried About 4-year-old with Depression
- Same Views On So Much, but Can't Get Along As A Couple
- It's Me or It's My Mother?
- Considering Divorce After Several Deaths in The Family
- Schizophrenia
- Schizophrenic Relapse !
- Please Help Me..
- My 19 Year Old Daughter is Out of Control
- My 19 Year Old Son
- I Desperately Want to Make This Work
- Help!!!
- Marraige Life of my Parents
- Is This Abuse and What Should I Do?
- My Girlfriend's Family Is Ruining Our Relationship
- I Feel Like I Have Failed - - May 20th 2010
- Relationship With My Bipolar and ADHD Girlfriend
- Huge Disapointment With My Husband
- I Don't Really Care About Anything. What Should I Do?
- What Should I do?
- My Father, The Sociopath...
- What is Wrong?
- What Should I do With my 19 Year-Old Daughter's Anger Issue?
- Dominating Mother
- How to Help Our College Age Son with Depression and Addiction
- Can My Marriage be Saved?
- Personal Hygiene
- Help Me Please. What is Going On With Me?
- Parenting a Bipolar Child, Not Quite a Child, Not Quite an Adult
- Am I Being Used?
- Is This Jealous Behaviour Normal In a Child?
- Grandson Behavior
- Husband's Addiction
- Help or Do Nothing?
- Pregnant Again
- Concerned
- Are my past sexual fantasies dangerous and unusual?
- It is finally an emergency. We need help. Please.
- Trauma and Drama: Why are friends and family rejecting me?
- Why is my mom following me around to take over my life?
- Does my husband have bipolar although the doctors said he doesn't?
- Fear of death and dying
- how to ask if the pics are her?
- Unhappy Marriage
- Did I push them too much?
- How do you turn your back on your 19 year old daughter?
- What To Do With a Dysfunctional Past
- SHOULD GRANDPARENTS INSIST ON SEEING A GRANDCHILD
- My husband wants to leave me
- My husband no longer believes
- My Son's Problem
- Why do I beat myself up over what they think?
- Bipolar sister, Narcissist boyfriend
- Understanding my son
- Worried about my son
- Child jealous of moms relationship with her new husband
- This guy I bully
- Is There Help Out There? Lonely Mother of Three
- Am I Depressed?
- Should I Give Up On This Marriage?
- dealing with demanding mother
- can you give me some advice please?
- 17 year old running the house
- Out of control 24 year old sister
- My needy son hates my boyfriend. How can I avoid choosing one over the other?
- voice in my head
- two intelligent adults who feel they don\'t have friends
- 19 Year Old Daugter--Out of control
- 17 yr old refuses help with bi-polar disorder
- Teen in Full Retreat
- out of control 16 year old nephew
- Depression? Bi-Polar? Personality Disorder?
- i need help with my sister
- Get Supported
- Forgotten or just ignored?
- Dealing with a family member's complete personality change
- Mother showering & sleeping in same bed with 5 year old
- Disbelief
- Zoloft - good or bad
- my little sister
- Unattractive regardless, why bother?
- Coping with Narcissistic Behavior
- How to Deal with the Loss of Family
- husband\'s anger
- Did I Love my husband and still abuse him emotionally
- I have a hard time making friends with other guys
- How to communicate to a \'feeler\'
- homesick
- how can i control morbid jealousy
- How can I open up and become my old self again?
- Advice for my unhappily married friend
- How can I tell the difference?
- Cannot support old friend in her affair
- Is Something Wrong With Her?
- Need to find a reason for the abuse
- Mom's Unlisted Number
- How to help a Womanizing friend?
- 'Extremely controling' wife and passive husband
- A Habitual Liar's Lament
- the way out is through the door
- Drug Addict Son
- Angry At Ex-Boyfriend
- Violent Sister
- When Will My Boyfriend Grow Up?
- A Marriage Outside The Caste
- Angry Mom
- Seeing A Married Man
- Disordered Family Member Behavior
- My Roommate
- A Mean, Verbally Abusive Woman
- Stepson With Personality Disorder
- Mom's Protector
- Busted By A 5-Year-Old
- Getting Along With Narcissistic Relatives
- Possibly Molested Daughter
- Dirty Niece
- Helping My Sister
- Congenital Laziness
- Blossoming Paranoia?
- Is Anxiety A Hereditary Factor?
- Enmeshed With Mum
- Hypochondriac Daughter
- Abusive Father
- Going Crazy
- Self-Abusive Step-Daughter
- (Wo)man In The Middle
- Paranoid Depression
- Withdrawn Brother
- Dysfunctional Family
- Paranoia
- My Mother Is Ruining My Life
- Cowardly Stepdad
- Daughter's Violent Marriage
- My Father Dislikes Him
- Histrionic Sister-in-Law
- Long-Distance Support
- Personality Disordered Grandmother
- Do I Tell My Children I'm Depressed?
- Father In Romania
- Mom's Venting
- Unhappy In An Arranged Marriage
- Toxic Parents
- A Situation For Tough Love?
- Avoiding Her Parents
- Boarding School Blues
- Depression Affects The Entire Family
- Internet Relationship
- I Want To Leave, But For The Children ...
- Public Menace
- Somatization and Hypochondrias
- Self-Injuring Sister
- Family Boundaries
- Dealing with Divorce
- Trashed House
- Relationship Triangulation
- What To Treat First?
- Love Triangle
- Problematic Parents
- His Mother is Ruining Our Relationship
- Managing Priorities
- Time to Cut the Apron Strings
- Mommy's New Boyfriend
- Busy and Wanting
- Over-Protective Mother
- He's Not Himself
- Jealous of My Fiance's Family
- Young Love
- Different Religions
- My Husband's Daughter...
- My Dad the Dictator
- My Children Aren't Speaking..
- Dogs Instead of Children?
- My Wife is Depressed
- Falling Apart
- Problems with My Daughter
Book & Media Reviews
- 12 and Holding
- A Lethal Inheritance
- A Parent's Guide to Asperger Syndrome and High-Functioning Autism
- A Stir of Bones
- Alone Together
- Always On Call
- Angels
- Artemis Fowl
- Bad Girls Club
- Becoming Anna
- 105 more
- Being the Other One
- Bowen Theory's Secrets
- Boys Will Put You on a Pedestal (So They Can Look Up Your Skirt)
- Breaking Point
- Caring for a Child with Autism
- Caring in Remembered Ways
- Claws
- Closer
- Crispin
- Daughter of the Queen of Sheba
- Dirty Details
- Divorce Poison
- Empress of the World
- Epileptic
- Every Visible Thing
- Family First
- Family Therapy
- Four Corners
- Friction
- Gandhi's Way
- Georgia Under Water
- Getting over Getting Mad
- Getting the Love You Want
- Getting the Love You Want Audio Companion
- Happiness Sold Separately
- Hope's Boy
- How Families Still Matter
- How to Keep Your Teenager Out of Trouble and What to Do If You Can't
- I Don't Know How She Does It
- I Only Say This Because I Love You
- Imagining Robert
- Inside the American Couple
- It's Love We Don't Understand
- Jakarta Missing
- Jumping the Scratch
- Last Chance Saloon
- Life's Work
- Live Through This
- Love Sick
- Loving Someone With Bipolar Disorder
- Mad House
- Making Babies, Making Families
- Making Sense of Suicide
- Making the Run
- Making the Run
- Mom's OK, She Just Forgets
- My Heartbeat
- Necessary Noise
- Notes on a Scandal
- Nothing to Hide
- Orgasms
- Out of the Dust
- Planet Janet
- Pop & Me
- Raising America
- Ray's a Laugh
- Relationship Rescue
- Reviving Ophelia
- Rick Sings
- Running with Scissors
- Secrets of a Passionate Marriage
- Sex, Family, and the Culture Wars
- Someone Like You
- Song for Eloise
- Special Siblings
- Staying Connected to Your Teenager
- Staying Sane When Your Family Comes to Visit
- The Arctic Incident
- The Art of Misdiagnosis
- The Awakening
- The Bastard on the Couch CD
- The Burden of Sympathy
- The Corrections
- The Corrections
- The Dream Bearer
- The Dulcimer Boy
- The Einstein Syndrome
- The Emotional Revolution
- The Eternity Cube
- The Hostile Hospital
- The Inside Story on Teen Girls
- The Little Friend
- The New I Do
- The Normal One
- The OASIS Guide to Asperger Syndrome
- The Rules of Survival
- The Same Stuff as Stars
- The Steps
- The Twits
- The Vile Village
- The Virgin Blue
- The Visitation Handbook
- The Years of Silence are Past
- Twisted
- Ultimate Judgement
- Understanding Marriage
- Understanding the Borderline Mother
- Unhappy Teenagers
- Wasteland
- What Goes Up
- What It Means to Love You
- What Our Children Teach Us
- When a Parent is Depressed
- Will You, Won't You?
- Zazoo
Links
Videos
- How to Cope with Political Discussions & Keep it Civil this Holiday Season
- Child Abuse and Family Conflict
- Families and Couples Lectures
- Seven Keys to Resolving Family Conflict
- Overcoming Conflict to Achieve a Happy Family
- Resolving Conflicts with Coworkers or Family Members
- Family Fights
- The Mad Family: Anger Management For Children
More Information
Topics
Related Topic Centers
Addictions
Aging & Elder Care
Assessments & Interventions
Career & Workplace
Emotional Well-Being
Life Issues
Parenting & Child Care
Abuse
ADHD: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
Adoption
Autism
Child & Adolescent Development: Overview
Child & Adolescent Development: Puberty
Child Development & Parenting: Early (3-7)
Child Development & Parenting: Infants (0-2)
Child Development & Parenting: Middle (8-11)
Child Development & Parenting:Adolescence (12-24)
Child Development Theory: Adolescence (12-24)
Child Development Theory: Middle Childhood (8-11)
Childhood Mental Disorders and Illnesses
Childhood Special Education
Divorce
Family & Relationship Issues
Intellectual Disabilities
Learning Disorders
Oppositional Defiant Disorder
Parenting
Self Esteem
Psychological Disorders
Anxiety Disorders
Bipolar Disorder
Conversion Disorders
Depression: Depression & Related Conditions
Dissociative Disorders
Domestic Violence and Rape
Eating Disorders
Impulse Control Disorders
Intellectual Disabilities
Mental Disorders
Obsessive-Compulsive Spectrum Disorders
Personality Disorders
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
Schizophrenia
Sexual Disorders
Somatic Symptom and Related Disorders
Suicide
Tourettes and other Tic Disorders