Managing needs in a relationship

[Rosesarered]

Recently I have been struggling with how to communicate my needs to my significant other which have recently increased since feeling more depressed. After critiquing my relationship, which only led to arguing, I have started to try encouraging with positive feedback only, instead of pointing out the negative things I need changed. Please let me know if anyone has helpful tips for this situation!

[YellowMellow]

In my experience at least, I’ve found it is almost impossible to depend on a significant other for all of your needs. Though in today’s world it can feel like it is something to be expected, I think the expectation is often set too high for any one individual to meet. When I have been down or upset over something and could not find resolution for it with my partner, I would often turn to friends or a community group of some kind to either get my mind away from the issue or find others that might be going through something similar.

Also, though it may seem like a non-starter for a lot of people, meditation is a very helpful thing in moments of depression or extreme anxiety. The way I think about it is the depression/anxiety we experience is often based on our emotions, which themselves are either based on past experiences/episodes or things to come in the future. Meditating allows you to drive away a lot of the energy you spend thinking about the past and future into the present. So take a minute, be somewhere alone, and just focus on your breathing. Though it may not feel like you are doing anything to resolve your issues/depression, focusing your energy and mental capacity on the present moment (even in something as simple as your breathing) tends to do wonders in terms of redirecting your energy and making you feel revitalized. Give it a try?

• This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by YellowMellow.

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