The Beginning

My name is Christine.  About five years ago, the rug was pulled out from underneath me when I discovered my boyfriend was cheating on me.  I was shocked, devastated and uncertain how to move forward because I had forgotten how to live my life without him.  The time that followed was challenging, but what I learned was that I hadn’t been happy.  That I had been stuck in a relationship where I felt constrained and alone, and that choosing to stay in that relationship had kept me caught in a place in my life I didn’t want to be.  I had been choosing to live apart from him while waiting for a commitment I was never going to receive, and I hadn’t really been living at all.

Following the end of that relationship I spent two years single until I felt ready to date again.  When I started to date I was terrified.  I hadn’t been on a first date in 15 years and I felt I was in a brand new world I knew nothing about.  I quickly met a man that captured my attention and fell head over heels fast.  The time I spent with him showed me a type of relationship I didn’t know could exist; one with passion, playfulness, space and connection.  And yet something wasn’t quite right.  He seemed to have one foot out the door and because of my experience of being cheated on I mistakenly assumed it had something to do with me.  When that relationship ended I was baffled and confused.  I didn’t understand what had happened and questioned my ability to build and navigate a healthy and happy relationship.  I questioned myself, my knowledge of relationships and my understanding of men.

So, I started to research.  I became a sponge and read everything I could get my hands.  And I started to watch what was happening around me.  I saw relationships fall apart and questioned what made the relationships that were still together happy.  My research focus quickly narrowed to the differences between men and women and what our unique needs are.  I was fascinated by what I learned about how we are wired differently and I quickly became passionate about understanding how we could relate to create happier, spicier and more fulfilling relationships.  What I intend to do here is to share the insights that I’ve learned.