Our relationship is improved when we communicate our needs.

Even if they don't get met, it's better when we communicate our needs.

Because then our partner knows us.

And what is intimacy, if not our partners being able to know us, understand us, hold us, even when things are not great?

Happy Monday, everyone. It's Sophie.

And a D.

We're always looking for new ways to support you, and we know firsthand how life can get in the way.

So we've created five-minute episodes with motivation from us and our great friends

to keep you feeling ignited and inspired no matter what life throws at you.

Welcome to the Ignited Motivation podcast, mini episodes every Monday.

Listen while you brush your teeth.

Or on your morning walk.

And you'll never miss out on the latest tips and tricks that are keeping us feeling motivated.

So intimacy has been an issue in our relationship, I would say, for the entirety of relation to some extent.

18 years. Gotten endlessly better. I mean, it would be, if the version of us 18 years ago saw us now, it would be hard for them to believe that it's the same couple. So we're doing amazingly well in that front. But, you know, as people who do this kind of work, we're always looking for where we can improve. Long story short, I was away with the kids on a trip and I was coming

home and trip and I was coming home.

And Sophie and I were kind of flirting.

Like text.

And when I got home, the kids came home, like eight bags.

We came for a snowboarding trip, noise, this, not the other thing.

Sophie kind of got taken out of this mindset of us connecting when I got back. And when we, the kids were put away and we actually had some time alone, she retracted a little bit. And that made me feel awkward because I've been building up. And I was like, oh my God, I'm so excited. We're going to get some time alone. So there's some weirdness and friction. My wife being good at what she's good at started communicating. I'm very in friction times i'm very much that shut down person who's like up let's not talk about it let's go to bed pretend everything is fine we'll go you know tomorrow we'll wake up and everything will be better it won't be better it just we'll forget and the emotions will go away a little bit and i'll be able to handle the day so if he's started to talk. She talks about it. We start having a conversation. She starts thinking about some things that might make her kind of

calm down again and be able to respond better. It takes 15, 30 minutes total for the entire

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