Now, back to where our past helps shape us but does not define us:

If you find yourself in an altercation with anyone, there is no need to wonder whether you are right or not. You are always right! Yes, that is what I said, YOU are always right when recalling details for argumentative purposes. At least that is what I have learned in my recent studies. scientists say the human brain will only retain that which it deems necessary to retain, and that is about fifty percent of what "actually happened". Yes, only % therefore you ARE right when it comes to the % you retained. Your mind keeps what it believes is valid to you and the person you are attempting to have this discussion with, will do the same. To clear this all up for you, an argument will not reach a point of resolution when two people stand firmly in THEIR version. Suggested by a variety of therapists and gurus' I have been studying, it is wise to simply hear it all, pluck out the facts and simply focus on them.

,It was September and I was living in San Diego, CA, with my 7 year old son and an Italian man named Marco. Marco and I had not had a very good relationship as he was abusive, both physically and psychologically. He used to make me write lettters to his old girlfriends since his handwriting was not the best, and threaten me with his fists if I didn't do it. He was abusive to my young son and I usually took the brunt of that by standing in front of my son when he went after him, and refusing to let him hit the child who was scared out of his mind. Then I would be the one to get in trouble but that was better than having my son get hit.

A new Month, a new a new Year, a new Cycle.

When they talk about postpartum depression, they talk solely about it being as a result of new motherhood, or the overwhelming emotions and stresses caused thereby. They don't stop and ask, "What kind of support network do you have? How do your parents treat you? How do your friends respond when you need help, or ask for advice? What do you think about leaving baby with someone else? What do you think about YOU? Are you still able to make time for yourself and the things you want? Aside from being a mother, and all the other things you already were?"

One of the most important things to consider when selecting a partner is compatibility. The definition of compatibility is “capable of existing together in harmony”. Well duh. That sounds like a no brainer. Of course you would want to exist in harmony with your partner. Otherwise, what's the point???

Men can get into relationships easily. Some men find that a challenge. Then there are times relationships fizzle out, become toxic, was a lesson or they will last. There is so much to this complexity of a relationship and of a woman. I have written my most beloved piece called, “How to Keep Her.” This time I want to dive into the things that turn a woman off and on. The things that make her lose interest. I’m a woman who wants to help our fellow men try to navigate the complex nature of a woman and their brain.

Abuse is an understandably uncomfortable topic for most people, sometimes because of the way we've been treated in the past, but more often it is about the sense of unease that we feel knowing it's more common than we'd like. Recognising abuse isn't always easy, however, especially when you're living in it.

You've gotten this far. A date is finally set, but it's just a matter of what you plan to do together. Typically your thought process would suggest the classic, "Dinner and a Movie," would be perfect. Wrong. If this is your first time meeting each other, or you've seen them a few times in real life, this option might not be comfortable for you or your partner. Here are a number of other suggestions for your first date:

It's Mother's Day, Father's Day, Valentine's Day, Christmas, Anniversary or the birthday of a loved one and we have the same problem every year. What could the perfect gift be?

The moment you wake up, tossing about, flipping your pillow over so many times, you reach out and all of a sudden there is nothing but a cold pillow on the other side of your bed waiting to greet you! Other than the 3 seconds of pure pleasure from feeling that cold pillow touch your rosy cheeks, fades just as easily back to the disdain you're feeling for the reality that you are, indeed, single!! Say it again, and again, louder for those in the back... I am SINGLEEEE... and I hate it, but I don't know how to get out of it!

If you've never been in a relationship before with a gaslighter, consider yourself lucky. What is a gaslighter? The term comes from a 1938 stage play about a man who psychologically manipulates his wife's perception by playing tricks on her to convince her that she is insane. For example, dimming the gas lights in their home and pretending that nothing has changed, or convince her that she is misremembering events and conversations that did in fact take place.