Personal Boundaries: Why Saying No Is So Hard — and How to Learn
Saying no is an emotional skill that many never learned. Fear of rejection, guilt, submission patterns: understand why and learn to set your boundaries.
Read article →Blog — Relationship Psychology
Articles on relationship psychology, communication patterns, and conversation analysis.
All (203)Couple (61)Rupture (24)TCC & Thérapie (22)Psychologie (20)Séduction & Dating (20)Manipulation (18)Anxiété & Stress (10)Jalousie & Infidélité (10)Estime de soi (6)Attachement (6)Dépendance affective (3)Famille (3)
The Impact of an Absent Father on Adult Romantic Relationships
An absent father leaves deep marks on adult romantic relationships. Discover the mechanisms and pathways to healing.
Read article →Emotional Relapse: Why You Fall Back Into the Same Patterns
You leave a toxic relationship after months of suffering. You swear to yourself that 'never again'.
Read article →Emotional Dependency: 10 Signs You're Addicted to Someone Else
Emotional dependency creates an addiction to another person. Discover the 10 revealing signs and CBT strategies to regain your emotional autonomy.
Read article →Emotional Dependency: What's Your Score?
Unsure about your emotional dependency? Rather than relying on vague intuition, this article offers you a self-assessment method...
Read article →Happy Single: Singlehood as a Fulfilling Life Choice
Type 'single' into Google. The first results are: 'how to stop being single', 'find love quickly', 'why am I still...
Read article →Starting Over After 40: Finding Love Again
You've passed the 40-year mark. Perhaps even 50. Behind you, there's likely a marriage, a divorce, children, disillusionment, perhaps one or two attempts at rebuilding that didn't work out...
Read article →Polyvagal Theory and Relationships: Understanding Your Automatic Reactions
Porges' polyvagal theory explains why you freeze, flee, or fight in your relationships. Decoding and practical applications.
Read article →Moving in Together: The Complete Guide Before Taking the Leap
We talk a lot about decoration, choosing the neighborhood, the size of the sofa.
Read article →Present but emotionally absent father: consequences
He was there. He lived under the same roof, he ate at the same table, he attended parent-teacher conferences. On paper, you had a father.
Read article →Son of an Absent Father: Rebuilding Your Masculine Identity
You struggle to assert yourself in your professional and personal life. You oscillate between a need to control everything and a constant sense of...
Read article →Daughter of an Absent Father: The Impact on Your Romantic Relationships
You choose emotionally unavailable partners. You give endlessly in your relationships, secretly hoping that one day you'll finally be loved 'enough'...
Read article →Absent Father: Psychological Consequences on Relationships
In France, 85% of single-parent families are headed by the mother alone (INSEE, 2024).
Read article →Why He/She Isn't Responding: Decoding Digital Silence
The message is sent. Read. No response. An hour passes. Two hours. Five hours. Your brain starts spinning: What did I say wrong?
Read article →How to Forgive a Betrayal: The 4 Stages of Forgiveness
You've discovered the betrayal. The initial shock has passed, replaced by a mix of anger, sadness, disgust, and confusion.
Read article →Emotional Dependency: Sophie's Testimony (CBT)
Names and certain details have been changed to protect confidentiality. Sophie is 28 years old and, in her own words, she is 'hooked on relationships.'
Read article →How to Help a Close Person with Emotional Dependency Without Burning Out
You love them. You see their suffering. And you don't know what to do anymore. Your partner, your friend, your adult child or your sibling is...
Read article →Emotional Dependency Test: 20 Questions to Evaluate Yourself
You have doubts. Something about the way you love doesn't feel right, and you sense it. Maybe you check your phone too often.
Read article →7 Signs of Emotional Dependency (and How to Break Free)
You check your phone every five minutes waiting for a message. You adapt your opinions to avoid displeasing others.
Read article →Emotional Dependency: Recognizing and Freeing Yourself
Emotional dependency is not the same as love. Love nourishes, dependency starves.
Read article →Over 190 applied psychology articles
The Psychology and Serenity blog offers over 190 articles by Gildas Garrec, CBT psychopractitioner in Nantes. Each article draws on validated psychological models (Gottman, Young, attachment theory, CBT) to offer practical insights.
Couple Communication — Gottman’s 4 horsemen, the 5:1 ratio, stonewalling, NVC
Attachment — Anxious, avoidant, disorganized styles, path to secure attachment
Emotional Dependency — 10 signs, self-assessment tests, CBT strategies
Ghosting & Dating — Ghosting, breadcrumbing, curving, orbiting, zombieing
Manipulation — Gaslighting, coercive control, narcissistic abuse, psychological violence
Infidelity — Understanding, forgiving, trauma bonding, rebuilding
Anxiety & Stress — Relationship anxiety, burnout, rumination, insomnia
Jealousy — Pathological jealousy, retroactive, social media
Breakup & Grief — The 7 stages, no contact, relationship PTSD
Couple & Cohabitation — Moving in, arguments, libido, mental load
Parenting — Parental alienation, co-parenting, blended families
Young Schemas — 18 early schemas, cognitive distortions
Dating Apps — Mental health impact, paradox of choice, dating fatigue
Mental Health — When to consult, online therapy, CBT vs EMDR
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Our methodology: 14 validated clinical models →
Discover the models of Gottman, Young, Bowlby, Beck, Sternberg and 9 others automatically applied to your conversations.
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