Everyday Ways to Connect at Home Sometimes it’s fun to plan an elaborate night out. Maybe you and your partner enjoy exploring the...

Turn home improvement headaches into opportunities for teamwork, laughter, and lasting connection. We moved in nearly six months ago....

Carolyn with her family in 2017.... The holiday season is a time filled with joy, celebration, and connection—or at least, that’s the...

My new book is coming out! I am thrilled to share the pre-order information for Fire It Up. Publishing January 7, 2025 by Flashpoint...

How proactive planning can create the best connection while travelling. (This blog is a repost, of my blog over at Psychology Today) .KEY...

“Byyyyyyyeeeee Daddy!!! I love you!!! I will miss youuuuuu!” The toddler’s exuberant yell echoed across the quiet street early yesterday...

The culmination of 25 years of plotting and planning and dreaming and working to get here. My first international couples retreat: The...

It could have gone much worse. Travel to the in-laws is commonly stressful for couples. One partner in their childhood home with their...

As a coach, I get to work with couples wanting to prevent problems and as a therapist, I work with couples who haven’t done so and are...

What keeps you stuck in a fight? You know the experience, you start a conversation to get on the same page with your partner about the...

(photo shows a gay couple wearing pajamas sitting on a bed, facing away from each other, looking sad.) Every relationship is different....

Do you know the purpose of your relationship? Is that a strange question? Many couples get really puzzled when I ask them that question,...

Are you dragging around issues with you that come up every fight? Do you get reminded of mistakes you made months and years ago, even...

Caption: Photo of Carolyn, her husband and their two dogs, standing under a tree full of Spring Blossoms. It’s pouring rain one day and...

That title sounds crazy, doesn’t it? Yet, we all make hundreds of mistakes a day. From typos, spilled milk, accidents, lost keys,...

(Image: Carolyn and her husband cross country skiing in Washington.) I bet like you, our falling in love was easy and joyful. We were...

Winter is a season of recovery and preparation. -Paul Theroux There was a record snowstorm here in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains...

When February 14th is rolling around… Some feel excited and giddy…. Others feel dread. Or irritation. Or pressure. It’s a loaded holiday....

Last night I achieved a feat of going live on three different platforms at once and my computer did not explode! I did do it sideways on...

“We were designed to connect with other people.” -Vivek Murthy One of the things I am talking most about with clients right now is the...

The pleas to ‘get back to normal’ are a common refrain these days. But as the beautiful poet Amanda Gorman reminds us, the opportunity...

"Life is not perfect. It never will be. You just have to make the very best of it, and you have to open your heart to what the world can...

The first signs of spring are starting to peak out, and with them, the tiniest glimmers of a transition away from the last year. On March...

"Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced."-James Baldwin This quote has many meanings,...

Seattle-based PACT Therapist, Carolyn Sharp shares techniques couples in quarantine can use to resolve conflict.

How to protect the health of your relationship long past COVID-19.

I spent some time with my colleague Jason Brand, LCSW in a Facebook Live on April 6th talking about what couples are struggling with...

One of the first things many couples ask upon first meeting me, is: “What is the deal with these crazy rolling chairs you’ve got?” As a...

We all know the scene: a couple begins discussing a current challenge for them and are quickly down the rabbit hole of past injuries....

Congratulations! You’ve taken the first, most difficult step in getting support for your relationship by seeking couples therapy. It is a...

How to focus your attention where it has the greatest benefit… “It’s hard to experience desire when you’re weighted down by...

Here is a blog post I wrote for the PACT Institute Website: By Carolyn Sharp, LICSW PACT Level 3 Therapist, PACT Ambassador...

Many folks have reached to ask whether our one-day pre-commitment retreat is appropriate for couples already committed for the long haul....

For newly engaged couples, there is the thrill of the life ahead. Folks are in bliss after finding their life partner—as they should...

There’s a wide variation of opinions about Valentine’s Day and its benefits. Some people look forward to the holiday as a means to...

by Sara Slater, LICSW My favorite bit of relationship advice so far this new year: “don’t be relationally lazy.” The words of respected...

Who among us doesn’t want to feel loved?  —STAN TATKIN Compassion. Something the world can certainly use more of these days. How can we...

In the second half of our interview, Sara and Carolyn responded to questions we have received from colleagues, folks signed up and our...

This holiday season, how have you invested in your relationship? by Sara Slater, LICSW Shopping in crowds? Wrapping like a maniac?...

Communication Differences: This video is one of my favorites about relationships. Hilarious because it is absolutely true-I think many of...

As we have shared with couples in our practices that we are beginning to offer retreats, a number have asked what prompted this. Well,...

We will add resources here that we think will be helpful to you here: The PACT Institute website has information about Stan Tatkin, his...