Seven steps to marital Ecstacy
By Joe Beam
Step One—Diminish Any Intense Negative Emotions
Intervention — When a spouse’s "addictive" behavior such as a continuing affair or obsessive gambling is destroying a marriage, caring people close to that person must intervene to stop the destructive behavior. While intervention usually cannot be done effectively by a spouse working alone, it can be extremely effective when done in conjunction with caring friends using proven intervention methodology.
Calming — Couples in disagreement experience negative emotions. Sometimes—even in good marriages and especially in troubled marriages—these negative emotions become intense. A couple at each other’s throat cannot work on their relationship in any positive way. Only when a couples brings all intense negative emotions under control can they proceed with the rest of the steps. Simple techniques and methods exist to calm every interaction or disagreement to a workable level.
Pathway — Most couples can develop marital bliss when they know the correct path to achieving it. The path must be simple, clear, and doable. A viable path creates hope to counteract hopelessness. We believe these seven steps are that pathway.