Welcome to my Blog

Thank you for stopping by. This space is where I share research, reflections, and practical tools drawn from my experience as a marriage and family therapist.

Are you a couple looking for clarity? A professional curious about the science of relationships? Or simply someone interested in how love and resilience work? I’m glad you’ve found your way here. I can help with that.

Each post is written with one goal in mind: to help you better understand yourself, your partner, and the hidden dynamics that shape human connection.

Grab a coffee (or a notebook), explore what speaks to you, and take what’s useful back into your life and relationships. And if a post sparks a question, or makes you realize you could use more support, I’d love to hear from you.

Be Well, Stay Kind, and Godspeed.
~Daniel

P.S.

Feel free to explore the categories below to find past blog posts on the topics that matter most to you. If you’re curious about attachment, navigating conflict, or strengthening intimacy, these archives are a great way to dive deeper into the research and insights that I’ve been sharing for years.

 

Signs of Trouble Daniel Dashnaw Signs of Trouble Daniel Dashnaw

What is Monkey Branching?

Monkey branching, a term coined to describe a behavior observed in primates, notably monkeys swinging from one branch to another without letting go of the first, finds its analogy in human relationships.

Some folks hold on to a current partner while they seek to climb higher with another.

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What is Emotional Inflammation?

Emotional inflammation, though not a term that has been extensively researched in scientific literature, is a concept that draws from both psychological and physiological domains.

It is often used metaphorically to describe a state of heightened emotional arousal or reactivity, akin to the body's inflammatory response to physical injury or illness…

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Signs of Trouble Daniel Dashnaw Signs of Trouble Daniel Dashnaw

3 Reasons why women, and perhaps all abused humans, remain in abusive relationships…

Women who were abused as children in their families of origin were more satisfied with their current abusive relationships than women who were not abused in childhood…

What if humans with childhood abuse histories are more satisfied in their abusive relationships because they have greater tolerance for abuse based on early life experiences, and resulting diminished expectations?

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7 Warning signs for potential DV

Here’s some breaking research about how a couple might acquire a penchant toward domestic violence.

In this post, I’ll discuss 7 specific warning signs.

In other words, the more likely you are to experience these 7 signs, the more likely domestic violence becomes…

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11 Critical tools for surviving the holidays with marital trouble…

Here’s another post I wrote in 2019 that can currently be found on the Couples Therapy Inc. website.

I’ve asked them so many times to return my work product… but they refuse.

They choose instead, to use it for themselves and are daring me to do something about it.

They did not ask my permission, and they attributed the authorship to a “Former Staff Writer.” instead of treating with courtesy and respect, by using my name.

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How long does it take recover your self-esteem from a break-up?

A recent German study shows that relationship that had lasted a year or more before the ultimate breakup are particularly damaging to self-esteem.

Subsequently starting a new relationship increased self-esteem, as long as the new relationship lasts.

However, shorter relationships — those lasting less than a year — tended to reduce people’s self-esteem.

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