EIGHT THINGS ALL COUPLES SHOULD GO THROUGH BEFORE GETTING MARRIED

(March, 2018) According to marriage and family therapists, here are the things all couples should go through together before getting married:
1. Take a big trip together. You need to see how it feels to truly rely on your partner when navigating novel experiences together.
2. Successfully resolve a big argument. Can you talk about things in a mutually respectful way? Can you communicate and collaborate without shutting down, attacking, blaming or getting defensive if you don’t immediately get your way?
3. Have an in-depth conversation about your childhoods and family histories. Spend time understanding your partner’s history, learn about their family, what they loved and didn’t love along the way. Do they believe they should put their parents above the marriage?
4. Make a shared budget and stick to it. Finances are the Number 1 reason partners who share a household fight.
5. Hit a rough patch – like a job loss, health scare or other stressful event – and come out the other side.
6. Go to couples therapy. The goal is to be able to transmit and receive messages in a way that remains respectful and doesn’t damage the relationship.
7. Live together. You’ll find out how compatible and how tolerant you can be toward one another.
8. Go through a sexual rut. Then be willing to talk about it.
* Whoa, whoa, whoa, doc… save some of the good stuff for after the wedding!
* And when you’ve done all eight, yell, “Yahtzee!”
* Wasn’t that fun? Now imagine doing it EVERY DAY FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE.
* The only rational response to this list is: “I think we should start seeing other people.”
* Written by somebody who clearly knows a thing or two about tossing off a quick article before deadline.
* Nothing about deciding who cleans the cat box?
* Please, please hurry up with the sex robots.