Late-Night Texts: Emotional Discharges and What They Reveal
The 11 p.m. messages, rawer, more intense, sometimes regretted by morning. These late-night discharges tell a couple dynamic that timestamping brings to light.
Read article →Blog — Relationship Psychology
Articles on relationship psychology, communication patterns, and conversation analysis.
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Love Bombing, Grip Cycle, and Attachment: The Mechanics Readable in Messages
Love bombing doesn't act alone: it relies on the grip cycle and our attachment vulnerabilities. Crossing the three reveals the full mechanics in the message history.
Read article →Love Bombing: The Intensity Curve Visible From the First Messages
An avalanche of passionate messages at the very start, then the cold. Love bombing draws a characteristic intensity curve that the history of the first exchanges reveals.
Read article →Mixed Messages: Decoding the Contradictory Signals of an Ambivalent Partner
Hot then cold, 'I love you' then distance: mixed messages exhaust and disorient. Their alternation, readable in the history, says more than any single message.
Read article →Need for Validation and Self-Esteem: What Message Frequency Reveals
Waiting for a reply as proof you matter: the need for validation and self-esteem cross in our messages. The frequency and nature of the requests say a lot.
Read article →Nonviolent Communication (Rosenberg) Applied to Your Couple Messages
Observation, feeling, need, request: the four steps of Marshall Rosenberg's NVC transform couple messages. Spotting where it breaks down in your exchanges.
Read article →Orbiting: Staying in Your Orbit Without Ever Texting (Likes, Story Views)
An ex who no longer texts you but likes your posts and watches all your stories: orbiting. This presence without contact has a logic the timeline of interactions reveals.
Read article →Passive-Aggressive and Contempt: Two Gottman Signals That Overlap in Writing
The passive-aggressive disguises hostility; contempt fires it. Crossing the two shows how indirect aggression slides toward belittling — a continuum readable in messages.
Read article →Polyvagal Theory: Spotting Stress and Calm in the Rhythm of Messages
Stephen Porges's polyvagal theory illuminates our states of stress and safety. In a conversation, these states show through in the rhythm and tone of messages.
Read article →Pursuer/Distancer Power Dynamic: Measuring It in a Conversation
One pursues, the other distances: this dance, described by couple therapists, inscribes itself in the rhythm of messages. Measuring it helps leave the vicious circle.
Read article →Reading Attachment Style (Secure, Anxious, Avoidant) in Texts
Secure, anxious, avoidant: our attachment styles, framed by Bowlby and Ainsworth, show even in how we write. The history of texts reveals their signature.
Read article →The Relational Dimensions of an Analysis Report: Affection, Communication, Conflict, Commitment, Balance
A conversation analysis report isn't summed up by a score: it breaks the bond into dimensions. Here's what each measures, and why the detail beats the total.
Read article →The Relational Prognosis: What a Conversation Analysis Measures (and Doesn't)
Can a conversation analysis predict a couple's future? What a relational prognosis honestly measures, its limits, and why it illuminates without ever deciding.
Read article →The Global Relationship Score: How a Conversation Analysis Reads
A global relationship score isn't a report-card grade: it's the synthesis of several dimensions read in a conversation. How to interpret it without over-interpreting it.
Read article →Seen, No Reply: What the Silent "Read" Receipt Really Says
"Read at 10:14 p.m." And nothing. The seen-with-no-reply is one of the most painful silences of modern communication. What does it reveal, and how to read it without losing yourself?
Read article →Sternberg: When Passion Fades but Commitment Still Speaks in the Messages
Passion fades, that's normal. But what remains when it drops? Crossing Sternberg's components in messages reveals whether commitment and intimacy take over.
Read article →Sternberg's Triangle (Intimacy, Passion, Commitment) Read in a Conversation
Intimacy, passion, commitment: the three sides of love per Sternberg. Their balance — or imbalance — can be sensed in the substance of the messages exchanged.
Read article →Stonewalling in Writing: Silence as a Wall, Message After Message
Stonewalling is total withdrawal: no more replies, the cut. In writing, this wall of silence leaves precise traces, readable in the rhythm of the messages.
Read article →Trauma Bonding and Intermittent Reinforcement: Why We Stay, Seen in Messages
Why stay in a relationship that hurts? Trauma bonding and intermittent reinforcement cross in messages to create a paradoxical attachment.
Read article →Triangulation by Messages: How You're Made Jealous in Writing
"My ex texted me again." "Everyone says I've changed thanks to you." Triangulation introduces a third party into the conversation to create insecurity. Here's how to spot it.
Read article →Over 190 applied psychology articles
The Psychology and Serenity blog offers over 190 articles by Gildas Garrec, CBT practitioner 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 →
Explore the models of Gottman, Young, Bowlby, Beck, Sternberg and 9 others automatically applied to your conversations.
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