Elevate Your Relationship | UGA Cooperative Extension

Looking for ways to strengthen your relationship? Whether you just started dating, have been married for a while, or have been married more than once, we can always use some guidance in developing and maintaining a healthy and satisfying relationship. Each publication in this series includes recommendations and activities to enrich the relationships you hold dear. For more resources, visit www.nermen.org.

39 publications were found in this series

Elevate Your Relationship Series: When Baby Makes Three: Making Time for Two (C 1052-01) The significant life-changing experience of becoming a first-time parent can be an exciting and stressful time, but can also take a toll on the marriage. In this publication, we describe why becoming …
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Empty Nest, Now What? (C 1052-02) When the last child leaves home, many couples experience difficulties to this new life adjustment. In this publication, we offer suggestions on how to identify and describe these problems as a couple …
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Let’s Talk S-E-X (C 1052-03) Communicating about the sexual relationship can be very difficult for some couples. In this publication, we describe the importance of communication about sex, how sex is viewed differently, and offer…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Love for a Lifetime: Acting on Your Love for Your Spouse (C 1052-04) Many married couples say "I love you" to each other, but practicing love is key to a lasting marriage. In this publication, we offer suggestions of how to express love and give ideas of how to put lov…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Making Couple-time a Priority (C 1052-05) Because of their busy lifestyles, many couples find it difficult to make time for just each other. In this publication, we describe the importance of one-on-one time and offer tips on how to make time…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: One Marriage, Two Religions (C 1052-06) Interfaith couples may experience hurdles when blending religious beliefs and traditions. In this publication, we describe challenges that interfaith couples may face and offer suggestions of how to d…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: P.S., I Love You: Dealing with Time Apart (C 1052-07) When one spouse is away and time is spent apart due to job- or military-related duties, the couple may experience unique hurdles and difficulties. In this publication, we describe difficulties long-di…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Staying Together After the Loss of a Child (C 1052-08) The loss of a child is an extremely difficult event for anyone to go through and often takes a toll on the marriage. Many couples do, however, maintain a healthy marriage through the difficult loss. I…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Are We Compatible? (C 1052-09) While contemplating if a dating partner might turn into a marriage partner, deciding how compatible you are as a couple is an important factor. In this publication, we describe why compatibility is im…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Before You Say “I Do” (C 1052-10) Taking the time to think about the marriage can be difficult while planning a wedding, but taking the time to think about the decision to marry can help you avoid future problems. In this publication,…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Getting to ‘Really’ Know You (C 1052-11) Dating is an important time of learning about yourself and your partner, but during the beginning stages of a dating relationship, each partner tends to put their best foot forward, which may lead to …
Elevate Your Relationship Series: How Attached is Your Relationship? (C 1052-12) Positive attachment is an important part of building a healthy marriage. When knowledge, trust, reliance, commitment, and sex are at balanced levels, strong, lasting attachment can help build stronger…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Marriage, a Promise to Work (C 1052-13) Many people believe that marriage is "happily ever after" and that happiness is the goal. In the publication, we describe the reality of marriage and the commitment involved.
Elevate Your Relationship Series: The New Year, a Good Time for an Intimacy Checkup (C 1052-14) Taking an annual inventory of the emotional, social, sexual, intellectual, recreational, and spiritual intimacy that is in a marriage can reveal what is being done well and what areas might need impro…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Commitment to Look for the Positive (C 1052-15) Committing to look for the positive in the relationship can have a strong impact on the strength of a couple's marriage and their levels of satisfaction. In this publication, we encourage couples to c…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Dealing with Anger (C 1052-16) Anger is an emotion that everyone feels from time to time, but mismanaging this emotion can lead to hurt and difficulty in the marriage. In this publication, we describe some ways that anger is not ha…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Goal Setting in Marriage (C 1052-17) Setting goals in a marriage can lead to expectations being met for both partners and for more marital satisfaction. In this publication, we describe the importance of setting goals and give some sugge…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Knowing Your Partner (C 1052-18) Taking the time to really get to know your partner can help build a strong relational foundation so that when significant life changes occur, the marriage can continue to stay strong. In this publicat…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Listen to Learn (C 1052-19) During partner communication, listening to learn, rather than listening to reject, is an important communication skill. In this publication, we explain the difference between listening to learn and li…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Money Talks (C 1052-20) Since conversations about money are often emotionally charged, these conversations can quickly turn into disagreements. In this publication, we list ways to communicate effectively about money, which …
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Surviving the Holidays (C 1052-21) Expecting a magical or perfect holiday season is something that many individuals practice, possibly leading to stress and disappointment, which can put strain on the marriage. In this publication, we …
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Owning the Message (C 1052-22) Making an effort to nourish your marital relationship can greatly strengthen your marriage. When conflicts do arise, using "I" statements can make communication more positive. In this publication, we …
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Managing Conflict, Winning at Love (C 1052-23) Conflict is a natural part of any close relationship, and learning how to handle conflict well can lead to each partner feeling understood and safe to share opinions and feelings, which can lead to an…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: What Did You Mean? (C 1052-24) Men and women communicate in different ways, which may lead to a misunderstanding. In this publication, we describe the ways in which men and women generally communicate and offer suggestions on how t…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: What I Said vs. What You Heard (C 1052-25) Many things, such as distractions, emotional states, beliefs and expectations, differences in communication styles, and self-protection can lead to a miscommunication between couples. In this publicat…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Bids for Connection: Creating Positive Interactions in Your Marriage (C 1052-26) Positive interactions are important to building a strong marriage. When one partner attempts to make a positive connection, how the other partner responds impacts whether the connection is positive or…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Great Expectations: What Do You Want for Your Marriage? (C 1052-27) Each person brings certain expectations to a relationship from previous experiences and exposures. In this publication, we describe expectations in the marriage and how opening describing these expect…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Newlywed Bliss Versus the Money Monster (C 1052-28) Money plays a major role in every marriage, and each partner handles money differently, which can lead to emotionally-charged disagreements. In this publication, we describe the impact money decisions…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: The Honeymoon is Over, Now What? (C 1052-29) After the "honeymoon phase," many couples find that marriage is not exactly what they envisioned, possibly leaving them less than satisfied with their relationship. In this publication, we describe th…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Before You Say “I Do” Again (C 1052-30) Remarried couples are different from first-marriage couples in that they bring different experiences to the marriage. These experiences can lead to unique difficulties. In this publication, we describ…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Dealing Positively with Your Former Spouse (C 1052-31) After divorce, many parents have difficulty establishing the type of relationship they will have in order to co-parent their child or children. In this publication, we describe the different types of …
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Instant Family and Love? (C 1052-32) Many couples in a stepmarriage bring certain expectations to the new marriage that might be unrealistic, not only for the marriage itself, but for the whole family. In this publication, we describe wh…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Money: Yours, Mine, and Ours? (C 1052-33) How money is handled in a remarriage is a major decision based on past experience and financial resources available. Many remarried couples use a variation of a "Yours, Mine, and Ours" approach. In th…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Stepparenting Begins with Common Ground (C 1052-34) Defining the role as a stepparent can be a very difficult transition, both for the stepparent and the stepchild. In this publication, we offer steps to help make the transition smoother and to help a …
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Is Work Starving Your Marriage? (C 1052-35) Due to the increasing demands of the workplace, some couples experience problems due to the interference that work might have with couple or family time. The working spouse may feel the stress of a de…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Caregiving Spouses (C 1052-36) As couples reach the later years of marriage, one partner may become ill and the other take on the caregiver role. In this publication, we describe ways for the caregiver to support their partner's se…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Enhancing Midlife Marriage (C 1052-37) While, at times, marital satisfaction might decrease during the middle years, there are also many benefits to this stage of marriage. In this publication, we describe the highs and the lows of the mid…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Honey, Do You Want Lilies or Daisies? Discussing End-of-life with Your Partner (C 1052-38) Describing end of life decisions can be uncomfortable and upsetting, but is an important topic to consider. In this publication, we describe ways for a partner to bring up end of life decisions in con…
Elevate Your Relationship Series: Preparing Your Marriage for Retirement (C 1052-39) Retirement is not only a transition period for the individual but also for the marriage. In this publication we describe the impact that retirement might have on the marriage and how to prepare for th…