Communication Is Not Always the Answer to a Healthy Relationship
Respecting each other’s freedom matters more.
When I was 24 years old, my boyfriend of only a few months, a quiet and introverted personal trainer, screamed at me for suggesting an alternative driving route. It was a learning experience.
A week later, I broke it off. I couldn’t shake the visceral feelings I had. He had turned me into someone from his past. Someone that once created feelings of hurt and anger for him.
When it comes to relationships, much of the advice says, stick it out and communicate your way through.
But for me, there is one good reason not to.
The man I’ve been in a relationship with for the past two-and-a-half years would never treat me that way. We communicate very well — with the exception being when we experience conflict. He shuts down and doesn’t want to talk about what he’s feeling, nor hear my perspective. It’s been challenging the assertion that communication is key.
Part of the issue he has — telling someone to stop doing something because it compromises free will — makes sense. He doesn’t want to point out things he doesn’t like because that would be controlling.
