10 Tips To Cope With Political Differences In Relationships

Since establishing ground rules for navigating conflict, their differences have provided opportunities to set a positive example of healthy communication for Banks’ teenage son. Lucy Banks has been with her partner for two years and says that navigating their opposing political opinions has been a challenge. She is progressive and a fierce feminist, while her partner is much more conservative and has expressed support for Donald Trump. Van Duyn calls this process “negotiated exposure”, and, in some cases she observed, it strengthened a relationship.

Here are eight effective sentence-starter words plus three phrases to avoid. Take these lists seriously if you want to smooth the ripples and rifts in your political conversations. It’s about exploring, sharing, and sparking awareness to issues that are crucial to preserving our humanity, with the common goal of moving forward as a collective and for the good of all people. It’s imperative to remember that online posts and comments boast no voice, facial expression, or mannerisms to decode, so don’t be too hasty in giving someone the axe. So something that appears disturbingly obvious and nonnegotiable to one person might not be immediately clear to another, even if they hold a similar intention. What do you do when differences threaten the harmony of a relationship?

**focus On Common Ground**

When his political views emerged after we married, I was completely apolitical and unprepared for the FGO (Freaking Growth Opportunity) that lay ahead of me. Political polarization is painful and can be poisonous to your relationships. It can ignite explosive conflict, create emotional distance, and even threaten the foundation of your relationship. It takes courage to separate the person from their behavior and political beliefs. No one said it was going to be easy, but to preserve and protect your relational space, you must commit to trying your best.

But these resentments build, and when the perfect storm of tiredness, stress, and alcohol kicks in, politics becomes the garbage can for their unsolved problems and festering emotions. And the wounding caused by these explosions further fuels their tendency to push it all once again under the rug. Amie M. Gordon is an Assistant Professor of Psychology at the University of Michigan where she directs https://www.lovesmoments.org the Well-Being, Health, and Interpersonal Relationships Lab.

Can Couples Overcome Political Differences? Experts Weigh In

Make the most of your health, relationships, fitness and nutrition with our Live Well newsletter. These and more can give you tools and resources to support your relationship through these difficult times. Learn to respect the differences in your partner, rather than criticizing and judging them. Life goes on, despite the hard knocks and uncertain times you’re in now. Hopefully, the vaccine will take care of the COVID-19 issue around the corner.

• Political polarization is painful and can be poisonous to your relationships.
• Find goals or beliefs that you have in common that go beyond politics.
• Be willing to leave a conversation before it becomes confrontational when you sense that it is getting too hot or fruitless.

Saying “what everybody else is thinking but afraid to say” may play well on political talk shows, but it can tank your marriage’s Nielsen ratings. Even though they vehemently disagreed, both partners felt the need to support each other’s right to vote. My life experiences have always served as a crucible for informing, shaping, and strengthening my professional work. What I’ve learned on this journey is particularly potent, and I’m eager to share it with estranged family members and couples in conflict. To avoid these scenarios, psychotherapist and marriage counsellor Dr Melissa Ferrari encourages conversations about expectations early in a relationship. This will reveal whether a potential partner sees you as their equal.