Latest news with #LovebyDesign
CNBC
15-07-2025
- Health
- CNBC
Successful couples have this one weekly habit: It's ‘my utmost recommendation,' relationship expert says
Successful couples check in with each other on a daily basis. Even if it's just five minutes to tell each other one good thing and one bad thing that happened, the habit ensures that "a day doesn't go by that one person went through something and the other doesn't know," says sexuality and relationship expert Sara Nasserzadeh. And there are weekly habits Nasserzadeh recommends couples pick up as well. One such habit, for example, is what she calls the "walk and talk." Here's what that looks like and why she thinks it's effective. A "walk and talk" is exactly what it sounds like: To the extent it's possible for the given couple, they take a walk and talk about an issue in their shared life. Nasserzadeh, who is also the author of "Love by Design: 6 Ingredients to Build a Lifetime of Love", recommends having a "couple's jar." Throughout the week, if there is anything one person in the couple wants to talk to the other about, they can write it down, put it in the jar and pick one at random before they head out on a walk. "It could be planning for the next vacation, it could be some tiff that happened," she says. If there's a conversation the couple should prioritize, the walk is a good time for it to happen. If the issue gets resolved, they can move on to the next issue the following week. If not, they can keep hammering it out until they've reached a resolution. "Limit it to one hour so it doesn't linger forever," she says. This tactic, Nasserzadeh says, is effective in solving problems and helping a couple move forward because during a "walk and talk," there is stimulation of both sides of the brain. When that happens, "the nervous system is calmer," she says, which can make the couple more receptive. "They are not offended as easily. They are not as defensive as they might usually be." It means they can both have an easier time solving the problem check it off their list of things to work on together. As far as building a successful relationship goes, this practice is "my utmost recommendation," she says.
CNBC
05-07-2025
- Entertainment
- CNBC
Charlize Theron is choosing to be single, she told ‘Call Her Daddy': That can be ‘a sign of strength,' says relationship expert
Oscar-winning actress Charlize Theron has had her share of romantic relationships. Among the most famous were her relationships with Third Eye Blind frontman Stephan Jenkins and actor Sean Penn. But these days, the mother of two is choosing to be single, she recently told Alex Cooper on podcast "Call Her Daddy." For her, building her family was about "being honest with who I am and what I can give right now," she said, adding that she realized she "was not somebody who should be having kids with another person." Here's why Theron chose to be a single mom, and why relationship experts support her decision. For Theron, there were two main motivations. First, Theron's parents had a tumultuous relationship. "There was a lot of alcoholism in my family," she said, "on both sides." And she grew up seeing the repercussions of that painful dynamic and wanted to avoid repeating what she saw at home. Second, it was a recognition of how she functioned in a romantic relationship. "I used to be someone in relationships that would lose herself," she said. She would often attract narcissists, which meant "walking on egg shells, trying to protect ego," she said. And she avoided conflict, preferring to placate to them than to fight. Ultimately, it was about "being very honest with myself and understanding that I did not have the capability of being healthy in a relationship," she said. Sara Nasserzadeh, sexuality and relationship expert and author of "Love by Design: 6 Ingredients to Build a Lifetime of Love," lauds Theron's decision. "I hear a woman choosing alignment," she says. "She is not turning away from love, she is choosing not to recreate cycles that would compromise her ability to live and love truthfully." She also sees Theron's choice as one made by an awareness of her surroundings. Historically, women have relied on men for financial stability, for example. "For many, partnership was a necessity more than a preference," Nasserzadeh says. "Charlize has the clarity, the support, and the resources to choose otherwise, and that is powerful." Psychotherapist and author of "13 Things Mentally Strong Women Don't Do" Amy Morin has seen many women make a similar choice. "Some were moms who didn't want to expose their children to their dating lives," she says, adding that, "others had done a lot of work on themselves but didn't want to practice their new relationship skills while the kids were around." Others, still, simply felt their lives were full. They didn't need the romantic relationship. "Some have experienced backlash as others question if they're truly happy or make jokes that there must be something wrong with them," says Morin. "But choosing to stay single can certainly be a sign of strength, not weakness."
