If you’ve spent any time on TikTok recently, you’ve likely seen a "cake smash" video that made you cringe. What starts as a sweet tradition of a couple feeding each other their first meal as husband and wife often turns into a scene of public humiliation. As mediators, we look at conflict patterns. And believe it or not, the cake smash is one of the most telling moments of a wedding day. Why it matters: A wedding is a public declaration of a partnership. When one partner us

Have you ever felt like the more you try to talk, the more your partner shuts down? Or, conversely, the more you need a moment to breathe, the more your partner follows you from room to room? Most couples think they have a personality problem . "She's just a nag." "He's just emotionally unavailable." The "Aha!" Moment: Neither of those is true. You aren't "bad" at communicating; you are stuck in a Stress Loop . This is a foundational concept in Family Systems Theory and Emot