Kate Motaung

If you have a strained relationship, your heart aches all the time. It's challenging to have a relationship with someone who doesn't reciprocate with you or possibly makes life more difficult for you. The good news is that a caring Christian counselor can help you navigate a strained relationship in your life. Why Do We Have a Strained Relationship? Strained relationships can come from different sources. Perhaps you had a relationship that was close at one point and misunderstandings put a strain on the relationship. On the other hand, you may have a relationship that never got off on the right foot and is now in a worse place than when you started. Relationships can also become strained if they carry a heavy load of criticism and defensiveness over time, or if the relationships are not maintained well by growth and support. These strained relationships can exist at home, in an extended family, at work, in friendships, and even in community groups or churches. They cause a lot of discomfort, usually for both people involved in the relationship, and even for people surrounding that relationship. Strained relationships sometimes happen because the other person is almost entirely at fault. Sometimes they occur because we have blind spots, and we don't recognize our contributions to the problems. However, even if the reason for the strain is only one percent your fault, you can start working on that part with the help of a trained counselor. Even though you may not be able to completely change the strain in the relationship, you can start building up your strength to handle it. Examples You may see a mirror of the strain in your relationship in one or more of these scenarios. Due to constant conflict, a dad is at odds with his teenage [...]