The new age of therapy
Life post COVID has proven to have its own unique set of challenges: Increased cost of living; from healthcare, housing, and food, to a shortage of frontline workers, and an apparent all-out assault on the rights of the individual. Truly, it can be said that we do indeed seem to live in interesting times.
In my own isolation, I’ve begun to ruminate on the ways that society has been going, and ways that we can all stand to grow a bit more as people to adjust to the world ahead. One such thing that came immediately to mind is the decline of the nuclear family. There truly has been a lot to be desired in many of the family lives of many of my friends and indeed this seems to extend across the breadth of society.
It’s said that our perspective is the majority of most of what we have control over, aside from how we react to things in our lives.
Not just swinging
When you hear the phrase “Wife-swap”, what do you suppose comes immediately to mind? A certain swinger party of old, and many a tongue in cheek innuendo no doubt…Here’s where I attempt to change that perspective.
In a healthy relationship, where the people involved are in communication with one another, and the closeness is of such a nature as of best friends, there is still going to be disagreements from time to time. Humans tend to be prone to boredom, falling into a rut of sorts, and due to stagnation the ability to adjust to challenges can begin to atrophy or blunt. In regards to a relationship, this inability to cope with the ever present challenges of life can, and often has, led to divorce. Obviously, when the life of a child is involved this is far less than desirable. Earlier today, I had an idea: conditional spouse swapping as a means of couples therapy.
Communication is key
Before you throw me to the wolves, hear me out. With divorce rates being where they are, and the whole of society being on the precipice of war, the need for strong families (and communities) has never been more important. That being said, desperate times do indeed call for desperate measures. With funds stretched thin, we find ourselves in greater need of direct social connections than ever before. Sadly, there seems a lack of some of these opportunities for many of us.
I propose a new alternative, through engaging the community, to build our family ties to greater heights. If we find the relationship with our partner stagnant, we might extend our trust to our partners, and propose we seek to arrange a platonic swap, in a relationship not unlike sponsoring a foreign exchange student, with a trusted couple whom we can rebuild our own relationship via introducing new perspectives. I recommend utilizing technology for this, as we can video chat and check in on a regular basis, and share the things we’ve learned from our day to day lives with our “foster families”, setting aside time to document these insights for once we go back to our own families.
Is it extreme, especially considering the chances we might cheat on one another? Perhaps, but that is what trust(and faith) is; feeling as though the worst might occur, but going forth and giving it a go regardless, as the alternative is far worse than not trying at all.
I hope you find this helpful. If you have any comments or ideas, drop me a line. I look forward to hearing from you! -Andrea
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