In your relationship, are you a pursuer or a withdrawer?![]() When fighting with your partner, do you prefer to: A - Ask for explanations, blame, push, overanalyse, criticise or B - Retreat, shut down, walk away, avoid or find distraction? If A, you are probably a pursuer. And I say “probably” because there is another type of pursuer, I will explain later. If B, then you are probably a withdrawer. A pursuer or a withdrawer is a role we (have learned to) take in a relationship when there is a conflict. The conflict may be of small or big importance. It doesn’t matter. What matters is the emotional importance the individual gives to the conflict.
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Or, How to go from avoidance to safe connectionThe Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde![]() Are you familiar with the story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr Hyde? It’s based on the novella of Robert Louis Stevenson and the story is about a man that he is a respectful and kind doctor during the day, when the night falls he turns into a heartless evil, killing innocent people. What Stevenson is trying to describe here is the duality of human nature; in other words how the shifting between “good” and “bad” is part of our inner struggles and how hard it is to incorporate both in order to come in peace and in acceptance of the inevitable existence of both these elements in our lives. ![]() Let's start with clarifying the difference between alone and lonely. "Alone" is when you find yourself in your own company and that it feels ok. It's when you feel content being and doing things alone, independently. "Lonely", on the other hand, is a feeling of estrangement and emotional distance from the people around you which causes you distress. You can be in the middle of a group of friends and still feel disconnected from them, that something is missing. It's when an overwhelming combination of feelings like shame, guilt, sadness, regret and unworthiness, creep in silently when you least expect it. But when they come, they come in huge waves dragging you down to the bottom of your emotional ocean. ![]() In interpersonal relationships, the position of the victim is one of the most popular ones. Everybody pushes, pulls, plays tricks, trips others, uses others, exhausts their resources and their minds, usually unwittingly and unconsciously, and eventually placing themselves in the position of the victim. |
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