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Swamped? Stressed? How to Keep Your Relationships Healthy

Featured Author:

Jay Cataldo

Jay Cataldo is a New York City-based life coach and relationship coach who passionately helps his clients break free of their limitations and design the life they were meant to live. He is also considered a “breakup expert” and has authored a highly acclaimed book on the subject. After years of coaching, Jay has come to understand what women need to have in their lives in order to feel truly empowered and fulfilled. Armed with this knowledge, he decided to bring together a team of intelligent, successful female mentors to create DefinitiveDiva.com — a multifaceted resource which gives today's modern woman the advice and support she needs to create the lifestyle she deserves. Be sure to connect with Jay on Excelle and in his relationship advice forum!

More articles from this author:

• 5 Ways to Keep Your Cool
• How to Calm an Angry Coworker
• 5 Power-Packed Dating Strategies

No matter what industry you happen to work in, there’s always that time of year where things become absolutely chaotic. For instance, if you work in fashion, I’m sure you’re all too familiar with how the pressures of “fashion week” can make your life a living hell for seven days straight (not to mention the many months leading up to it).

Whether a big show is coming up or the big clients are coming into town, these kinds of grueling workweeks can have quite an impact on your romantic relationships. Long hours, an endless to-do list and a throng of fuming co-workers can leave you anxious and exhausted by the day’s end. Add a peeved partner to the mix, and you’ll be ready to dive headfirst off a twelve-story building.

So to help you avoid any additional stress during these difficult times, I’ve put together a list of four quick strategies which are designed to not only help keep your relationship drama-free, but to bring you and your partner closer together, as well.

1. Give them the spiel

A few weeks before it hits, start discussing the big event in a way that frames it as an something that needs to be tackled together as a team. This is especially important if your partner does not work in your industry or if you’re in a new relationship (less than a year).

In other words, talk about the shortage of time you’ll have, how drained you’ll feel and how much you dread this time of year. Don’t forget to explain in advance how incredibly exhausted, moody and irritable you may be so they don’t take it personally when something seemingly insignificant sends you off the deep end.

Finish up by letting them know this one will be a doozy and that you’re counting on them for support. By making the carnage sound much worse than it will be, your partner will be pleasantly surprised when things don’t turn out as badly as they expected.