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Although results vary from couple to couple, the following five scenarios typify over 90 percent of the married and engaged couples that have taken the Relationship Inventory and have used the Counseling Insights to facilitate their discussion and resolve any potentially problematic issues: Beth and Dan were having marital problems but were hesitant to go to a professional counselor to resolve their differences. Intelligent enough to know the harmful effects that divorce can have on children, and not wanting their own two children to be harmed by their relationship problems, they decided to complete the Relationship Inventory that they learned about from a couple that found it helpful in their own relationship. Because they were totally honest in completing the inventory and took full advantage of the Counseling Insights,their relationship was not only saved, but Beth and Dan found themselves more in love than ever before in their lives. Felicia and Bob who were engaged learned that there were fourteen statements that required discussion in their case. While they were able to resolve all but one of them with the help of the Counseling Insights, there was one problem they could not solve. Because they were making plans to get married in Felicia's church, they made an appointment with Felicia's pastor with whom they shared the results of their inventory along with their completed "Biographical Profiles" they downloaded from The Relationship Site homepage. The pastor, having had years of pastoral counseling experience, was able to help the couple with their particular problem and reinforce their decision to marry. Tiffany and Eric discovered that there were five different statements that needed to be addressed. While they were initially encouraged by the fact that the program identified only five potentially problematic issues in their relationship, they later discovered that one of these issues proved to be irreconcilable in which one partner wanted children and the other partner was set on having an operation that would preclude having a family. This revelation led the couple ultimately to cancel their marriage plans. While Tiffany regretted breaking up with Eric, she was later relieved that this took place when it did instead of months or years after they were already married. Grace and Tom completed the inventory and learned that there were only four statements that were potentially problematic in their relationship. One of the reasons this number was relatively low was because Grace was hesitant to admit to certain shortcomings on Tom's part. Hence, when asked if her partner was always able to control his temper, Grace answered "Yes" instead of being honest and responding "No." Because she did not want to address his problem in dealing with anger, Tom's problem only grew worse and their relationship ended in divorce when Tom's abusive behavior threatened both Grace and their child. Had they both been more honest in responding to the statements in the inventory, Tom's anger problem might have been able to have been arrested and they might be happily married today. This particular case underscores the importance of being honest in responding to the statements. Kelly and Doug learned about The Relationship Inventory and Counseling Insights from a couple who credit the program with having saved their marriage. However, because their problems had already reached a critical stage that involved multiple extramarital affairs, Kelly and Doug were not able to salvage their relationship even with the Counseling Insights they read and discussed at length. Such an outcome underscores the importance of utilizing the program early before resolvable problems evolve into truly irreconcilable differences. |
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FIVE TYPICAL SCENARIOS |