Get Your Marriage On! with Dan Purcell

Ok, I'm just… really curious. I have a ton of questions about sex toys. Teresa and Blair are the owners of the website, Romantic Blessings, and were gracious to have a frank conversation with me about vibrators and sex toys. I've had this view that sex toys were dirty, bad, and all about solo masturbation. I had this stigma that they were unsavory. But I'm learning they can be a great addition to you and your partner's sexual experience. In the right context, they can add to the bonding and intimacy that makes sex fulfilling. Toys can also add novelty, which is really important for long-term relationships: they can make sex a whole lot of fun, feel new gain, be exciting, and of course pleasurable too. I hope this episode gives you some helpful info -- whether you're new to toys or experienced, I hope the information shared helps. With Christmas coming up, perhaps you'll want to try some new things after listening. Visit Romantic Blessings and use our code for 15% off! Code: GYMO15

I've heard it said that issues relating to money are the second leading cause of divorce in America. Although we focus a lot on sexual intimacy on this podcast, with Christmas and the financial stress it brings to marriages right around the corner, I thought addressing how to get on the same page with your spouse regarding money would be a good topic to address. And that's when I found Ashlee Binderim on Instagram. Ashlee and her husband Dave started their marriage with over $225,000 in debt. They were both working part-time, going to college full time, and barely making ends meet. After years of struggling, they finally figured out how to link arms and tackle financial goals together. Current debt payoff: $162,000 to date! Now, she's a certified financial coach and on a mission to help other couples reach their goals by getting on the same page with their finances so they can set up a secure future. To learn more from Ashlee visit her website Beyond Millions.

Do you or your spouse live apart for part of the time? How do you keep your marriage strong when you may not see each other every day? And can distance really make the heart grow fonder? If you're wondering these things too, you're going to love this episode. Roughly 4 million American couples live apart for some of the time, whether for military, pilots, artists, traveling salespeople, medical professionals, or for other reasons. Elaine, a licensed marriage & family therapist, and her husband Abe, found themselves in a commuter marriage through some unique circumstances. They help other couples in similar situations maintain a strong relationship while apart. They are the co-host of the "Love Is In The Air" podcast (featuring an airplane as their logo -- get it?). Together they have 5 children.

About 1 in 8 couples have trouble conceiving. Infertility can become a real struggle for couples, sometimes interfering with intimacy and impacting their sex life. I'm was fortunate enough to meet Sadie Banks, a mother of one (soon to be two) who has dealt with years of struggles revolving around infertility and the impact it's had on her marriage. In this episode, Sadie shares what she's learned and offers helpful tips on how to keep your marriage growing through it all. If you or someone you love is struggling with intimacy during infertility, I hope this episode inspires you and gives you hope. Sadie Banks is the owner and creator of Good Grief Journals. In 2018, she was in the trenches of her Infertility Journey, she needed a guided outlet to help her through the emotions and hard experiences that her infertility journey brought into her life. After interviewing over 100 women who had experienced infertility or who were experiencing infertility, she created a prompt journal specifically for working through infertility trauma and grief. Shortly after creating the Infertility Journal, it was clear that guided journals for other types of grief were needed too and Good Grief Journals expanded.

Modern electronic media has had a big impact on relationships, especially in the last two decades. It's never been easier to stay in touch with loved ones or improve real-time communication. Like many things in life, media use can be helpful and harmful on our relationships, depending on how it's used. I got in touch with McCall Booth, a super-smart Ph.D. candidate at Indiana University that researches the media's impact on marriage and families. I hope her insights help you and your lover draw closer intimately with wiser media choices.

Building a strong marriage requires each individual to also be strong on their own. We also want to feel free in our relationships, which requires a lot of maturity and personal growth. My guest today is Julie Bender. I love her story because she illustrates what growing and maturing in a relationship can look like. Julie's shares how she's learned how to embrace her story, and in that, found healing and her true self. To learn more about Julie check out The Julie Bender Show Podcast and the This Grit and Grace Life Podcast which she co-hosts. She also produces a weekly video series for wives called #prayingforyourhusbanddaily.

This episode, #52, marks 1 year of podcast episodes for Get Your Marriage On! I've had the privilege of interviewing many sex experts over the previous year. In many of the episodes I ask them what black belt sex tips they'd give to a couple in a healthy marriage up the quality of connection and pleasure in the bedroom. I've rounded up my favorite 20 tips. Ready? Let's go!

Have you ever wondered how do you talk to your kids about sex? Why does talking about sex with our kids feel awkward most of the time? What's the best approach to talk about dating relationships, our bodies, and everything in between? What about the hard topics? Well, if this has been on your mind, you're in for a treat today, as I am able to sit down with Tammy Hill. Tammy is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and an adjunct professor of Family Life at Brigham Young University.

Have you ever noticed that there's something almost invisible and intangible that interferes with our ability to connect with our spouses sometimes? According to our expert guest today, it affects women more than men. It's about the mental load we carry, how our minds are constantly buzzing with all the things that need to get done. Couples that develop the skill of "bearing one other's burdens so that they may be light" find more room to connect and find happiness in their relationship. Morgan Cutlip has a PhD in counseling psychology from the University of Akron and holds a master's degree in Human Development and Family Sciences from Ohio State University. She specializes in helping individuals and couples find happiness and health in their relationships. She and her father are the founders of My Love Thinks, a company dedicated to creating user-friendly and practical relationship education resources. As you'll soon hear, Dr. Cutlip has a special passion for helping couples find a fair distribution of responsibilities in the home and helping mothers engage in meaningful self-care.

Ahhhhh, communication in marriage. It's so important, and also a source of frustration in our most important relationships! We don't always know how to talk, and more importantly, listen to one another, especially when emotions run high. Learning to talk about intimacy in marriage is also a skill we can develop. My guest today is Denise and Oliver Marcelle founders of Denoli LLC. They mentor couples on improving their communication skills for deeper intimacy and connection. They've been married for 20 years and have 3 children.