Marriage Book Review: The Love Prescription by the Gottmans

I’ll just jump right into it…The Love Prescription is a great book! I’ve known about the relationship experts John and Julie Gottman for years, but I was introduced to this book on Brene Brown’s podcast “Unlocking Us”. She did a three-part series with the Gottmans talking about how the book came to be and all the research behind it. After listening to the podcast, I bought The Love Prescription and have loved it ever since! I recommend it to all of my couples therapy clients.

The Love Prescription is a 7-day, research-based marriage challenge to increase intimacy, connection, and joy. Each day they explain a technique to improve your marriage, share some engaging stories, and give practical and helpful tips to help you get started.

The 7 challenges are…

1. Make contact
2. Ask a big question
3. Say thank you
4. Give a real compliment
5. Ask for what you need
6. Reach out and touch
7. Declare a date night

You might be looking at this list and thinking “These don’t really seem like life-changing ideas”… and you are right. But the truth is, from my work with couples and from all of my reading and research, the key to a happy marriage isn’t dramatic romance and big gestures. It is creating a culture of safety, appreciation, fondness, and intimacy.

And The Love Prescription does a phenomenal job of explaining the WHY and HOW to accomplish that. They share funny stories from their marriage, moving stories from their clients’ marriages, and just make you want to be a better spouse.

A few more reasons I love this book:

1. It’s short! It is only 157 pages long and is an easy read.
2. It’s affordable. It is currently $12.99 on Amazon and you can get it even cheaper if you buy it used.
3. It’s actionable. After each chapter, you know exactly what you need to work on.
4. It’s relatable. The Gottmans are marriage researchers and you would think they would have a perfect marriage, but they are generous with the realities of their marriage and it makes you trust them even more than their credentials alone.
5. Your partner doesn’t need to read it too for it to work. You could read this book alone, apply the tips you learn, and improve your marriage all by yourself. Your partner doesn’t even have to know you are doing it! It is ideal when both partners are working together, but the reality is that sometimes your partner doesn’t think the marriage needs to change or doesn’t have the capacity to focus on a 7-day challenge.

If you are looking for a great way to refocus your relationship on what matters most, then you will love this book. You can check it out here as well as some of my other favorite marriage book recommendations!

Looking for more ways to level up your marriage? Then you will love my Marriage Makeover Course! In this online course I teach you how to solve the root of all issues in your relationship… your thoughts and mindset. Click HERE to learn more and enroll today!

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