Learn more about Relationships

How couples can sustain a strong sexual connection for a lifetime | Emily Nagoski

As a sex educator, Emily Nagoski is often asked: How do couples sustain a strong sexual connection over the long term? In this funny, insightful talk, she shares her answer -- drawing on (somewhat surprising) research to reveal why some couples stop having sex while others keep up a connection for a lifetime.

3 Ways to build a happy marriage and avoid divorce | George Blair-West

Choosing to marry and share your life with someone is one of the most important decisions you can make in life. But with divorce rates approaching fifty percent in some parts of the world, it's clear we could use some help picking a partner. In an actionable, eye-opening talk, psychiatrist George Blair-West shares three keys to preventing divorce -- and spotting potential problems while you're still dating.

Your brain hallucinates your conscious reality | Anil Seth

Anil Seth asks us to imagine being a brain locked inside a bony skull. There is no light or sound. The brain relies solely on electrical impulses generated from the outside to make its best guess about what’s going on in the world. Similarly, it makes a guess about the body seemingly attached to this brain. The brain also relies on memories of what it has learnt in the past to combine with the new electrical impulse to improve its understanding of what’s really going on in here and out there. This model of consciousness is very useful to us at Focus on Relationships. What if all relationship issues – in fact what if all emotional problems are actually a result of faulty programming in the brain? In other words, what if incorrect information was delivered to the brain at an earlier point in time and accepted as correct? Let’s face it, Mum and Dad probably didn’t get everything right! If we are open to the possibility that we can do things differently, then we can discover those pieces of incorrect information stored in our brain and look at them differently. When we do that, things shift; relationship problems become solvable; we feel powerful; life becomes wonderful.

Owning your own sexual power | Amy Jo Goddard

Amy Jo Goddard shares her ideas on owning your own sexual power as part of the TEDxNapaValley 2014 "Going Against The Grain, embracing the unconventional" event.

Rethinking infidelity ... a talk for anyone who has ever loved | Esther Perel

Esther Perel provides excellent information on infidelity in this entertaining and riveting talk. Do you think she is correct when she suggests that men stray because they are trying to avoid intimacy and women stray because they are longing for it? She develops the argument well. You can read more about Jane's response to this video in her blog.

The power of vulernability | Brenè Brown On Vulnerability

Connection is why we're here. It gives purpose and meaning to our lives. Fear that we're not worthy of love and connection keeps us out of love and connection. This is one of the key messages Brené delivers in her discussion of her extensive research on vulnerability.

Box'd Night In

Box'd Night have recently introduced a new product called "Emergency Date Kit". This all in one kit is more compact, lightweight and includes everything needed to set the mood for date night.

Box’d Night In deliver an incredible date night to your door. No need for planning or hitting the town — they offer brand new experiences, perfect for reconnecting and bonding with your partner, all from the laid-back luxury of your lounge room. Box'd Night In is offering a 15% discount on all their date boxes and free shipping. Just use FOCUS15

Your Inner Calm Coach

Suzanne offers one and one coaching for working on all levels of mind and body.

Beyond the Ordinary

Diane McCann and her team offer amazing women’s and men’s courses around the country as well as Tantra Retreats for couples in Adelaide. Diane has been running Couples Retreats for over 35 years. Her genuine love and warmth for every individual shines through her as she creates a sacred environment for couples to explore their own unique relationship. This is an experience that every couple deserves to have at least once in their life time.

TantraNova

This Chicago-based organisation offers both online and retreat style courses. They offer excellent, comprehensive programs about Tantric sex. The founders, Elsbeth Meuth and Freddy Zental Weaver are intelligent and down to earth and their integrity is unquestionable. We recommend their courses to anyone interested in deepening their knowledge about their spiritual and sexual opportunities. Also see Elsbeth and Freddy's book Sexual Enlightenment.

The Gottman Institute

The Gottman Institute provides practical, research-based tools to strengthen relationships. Co-founded by Drs. John and Julie Schwartz Gottman. The Gottman Method Theory aims to increase friendship and closeness in couples. It does this by showing them ways to deal with problems and conflicts in a positive way.

Becoming Supernatural | Dr Joe Dispenza

Joe Dispenza's Becoming Supernatural: How Common People Are Doing the Uncommon (2017) explains how people can achieve their potential by harnessing the power inside themselves. The book outlines principles and practices that help ordinary people improve health, mood, finances, and relationships. The author of the New York Times bestseller You Are the Placebo, as well as Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself and Evolve Your Brain, draws on research conducted at his advanced workshops since 2012 to explore how common people are doing the uncommon to transform themselves and their lives. Becoming Supernatural marries the some of the most profound scientific information with ancient wisdom to show how people like you and me can experience a more mystical life. Readers will learn that we are, quite literally supernatural by nature if given the proper knowledge and instruction, and when we learn how to apply that information through various meditations, we should experience a greater expression of our creative abilities; that we have the capacity to tune in to frequencies beyond our material world and receive more orderly coherent streams of consciousness and energy; that we can intentionally change our brain chemistry to initiate profoundly mystical transcendental experiences; and how, if we do this enough times, we can develop the skill of creating a more efficient, balanced, healthy body, a more unlimited mind, and greater access to the realms of spiritual truth. Topics include: Demystifying the body’s 7 energy centers and how you can balance them to heal, How to free yourself from the past by reconditioning your body to a new mind, How you can create reality in the generous present moment by changing your energy, The difference between third-dimension creation and fifth-dimension creation, The secret science of the pineal gland and its role in accessing mystical realms of reality, The distinction between Space-Time vs. Time-Space realities, And much more. Using tools and disciplines ranging from cutting-edge physics to practical exercises such as a walking meditation, Dr. Joe offers nothing less than a program for stepping outside our physical reality and into the quantum field of infinite possibilities.

You Are the Placebo | Dr Joe Dispenza

Is it possible to heal by thought alone--without drugs or surgery? The truth is that it happens more often than you might expect. In You Are the Placebo, Dr. Joe Dispenza shares numerous documented cases of those who reversed cancer, heart disease, depression, crippling arthritis, and even the tremors of Parkinson's disease by believing in a placebo. Similarly, Dr. Joe tells of how others have gotten sick and even died the victims of a hex or voodoo curse--or after being misdiagnosed with a fatal illness. Belief can be so strong that pharmaceutical companies use double- and triple-blind randomized studies to try to exclude the power of the mind over the body when evaluating new drugs. Dr. Joe does more than simply explore the history and the physiology of the placebo effect. He asks the question: "Is it possible to teach the principles of the placebo, and without relying on any external substance, produce the same internal changes in a person's health and ultimately in his or her life?" Then he shares scientific evidence (including color brain scans) of amazing healings from his workshops, in which participants learn his model of personal transformation, based on practical applications of the so-called placebo effect. The book ends with a "how-to" meditation for changing beliefs and perceptions that hold us back--the first step in healing. You Are the Placebo combines the latest research in neuroscience, biology, psychology, hypnosis, behavioral conditioning, and quantum physics to demystify the workings of the placebo effect . . . and show how the seemingly impossible can become possible.

Breaking The Habit of Being Yourself | Dr Joe Dispenza

You are not doomed by your genes and hardwired to be a certain way for the rest of your life. A new science is emerging that empowers all human beings to create the reality they choose. In Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself, renowned author, speaker, researcher, and chiropractor Dr. Joe Dispenza combines the fields of quantum physics, neuroscience, brain chemistry, biology, and genetics to show you what is truly possible. Not only will you be given the necessary knowledge to change any aspect of yourself, but you will be taught the step-by-step tools to apply what you learn in order to make measurable changes in any area of your life. Dr. Joe demystifies ancient understandings and bridges the gap between science and spirituality. Through his powerful workshops and lectures, thousands of people in 24 different countries have used these principles to change from the inside out. Once you break the habit of being yourself and truly change your mind, your life will never be the same!

A Course in Miracles | Helen Schucman

"A Course in Miracles" is a unique spiritual self-study program—a course in mind-training—designed to undo the illusion that you are separate in any way from God or your fellow humans. At the level of the mind we are all united as one. When we learn to live this truth consistently, fear, anger and guilt give way to a profound sense of inner peace. The Course systematically leads you to experience God’s Love in all your relationships through the practice of forgiveness (releasing the past), the willingness to receive and follow higher guidance, and the cultivation of miracle-mindedness. Happiness, peace, joy, and love are the natural outcomes of the Course’s teaching.

A Course in Miracles-Made Easy | Alan Cohen

A Course in Miracles (ACIM) - the self-study spiritual-thought system that teaches the way to love and forgiveness - has captivated the minds and captured the hearts of millions of people. Delivering inner peace where fear and pain once prevailed, its universal message is unsurpassed in its power to heal. Yet many students report that they have difficulty grasping the principles or keeping up with the lessons. So even while they yearn for the spiritual freedom the Course offers, they put the book aside, hoping to get to it one day. Alan Cohen, ACIM student and teacher of more than 30 years, takes the big-picture ideas of the Course and brings them down to earth in 22 concise, easy-to-understand chapters.

A Return to Love | Marianne Williamson

A Return to Love is based on the author's experiences as a teacher and lecturer on the self-study guide A Course in Miracles. She explains how applying the principles of love to all difficulties can aid in healing and bring about a personal transformation of the reader. Whether your `pain' is in the area of relationships, career, health or emotions, this book shows you how love is the key to inner peace, and how by practising love we can make our own lives more fulfilling while creating a more peaceful and loving world for our children.

Buddhas Bedroom-The Mindful Loving Path to Sexual Passion and Life Long Intimacy | Cheryl Fraser

In this playful and sexually savvy guide, “Dr. Cheryl” Fraser presents enlivening mindfulness exercises, techniques from couples and sex therapy, and the wisdom of Buddhist teachings to help you spark the passion and thrill you’ve been seeking in your relationship. With this book, couples can break free from the monotony of familiar routines and bring a little nirvana back to the bedroom for a more exciting, loving, and fulfilling connection.

Flourish | Martin Seligman

While certainly a part of well-being, happiness alone doesn't give life meaning. Seligman now asks, What is it that enables you to cultivate your talents, to build deep, lasting relationships with others, to feel pleasure, and to contribute meaningfully to the world? In a word, what is it that allows you to flourish? With interactive exercises to help readers explore their own attitudes and aims, Flourish is a watershed in the understanding of happiness as well as a tool for getting the most out of life.

Forgiveness is Power | William Fergus Martin

In this manual on how to forgive, there are insights and exercises without a preachy message or assumption that people "should" forgive. With chapters that explain what forgiveness is and how to deal with obstacles to it, it also addresses reconciliation with others and one's own self. Practical and accessible, the book does not require religious practice or philosophy; it simply shows how to forgive in order to enhance self-esteem, be happier, and break free from limitations that can hold a person back.

Forgiveness is Power-free ebook | William Fergus Martin

This free ebook takes you on a wonderful journey to freedom, happiness and success. Have you ever found success elusive, relationships difficult, or peace of mind hard to find? Have you ever felt undeserving of something; yet, you wanted it desperately? Have you ever wished you could be a better person, but keep tripping yourself up and making the same mistakes?

Receiving Love — Transform Your Relationship By Letting Yourself Be Loved | Harville Hendrix and Helen LaKelly Hunt

This book inspired Jane to incorporate the importance of giving and receiving successfully into Focus on Relationships' retreats. Most people believe that they do the majority of the giving in a relationship. Since this just isn’t possible, it would seem that many of us are failing to receive fully. Simply deciding to notice everything our spouse is doing well makes a significant difference to our happiness.

Sexual Enlightenment: How to Create Lasting Fulfillment in Life, Love, and Intimacy | Elsbeth Meuth and Freddy Zental Weaver

This is an excellent guide to transforming your sexual experience into a mindful, spiritual practice. Elsbeth and Freddy deliver the message of intelligent sexuality in a disciplined but gentle way. This book would also be a useful guide for couples or singles wanting to create a mindfulness practice.

The Disappearance of the Universe | Gary R Renard

When two such teachers appeared before Gary Renard in 1992, he chose to listen to them (and ask a lot of impertinent questions). The result is this startling book: an extraordinary record of 17 mind-bending conversations that took place over nearly a decade, reorienting the author’s life and giving the world an uncompromising introduction to a spiritual teaching destined to change human history.

The Five Love Languages: The Secret to Love that Lasts | Gary Chapman

Falling in love is easy. Staying in love—that’s the challenge! How can you keep your relationship fresh and growing amid the demands, conflicts, and just plain boredom of everyday life. The idea of looking out for how your partner experiences love and trying to provide it in that desired way has given a lot of people great opportunities to be closer and more connected with each other. Asking for love to be expressed in a way you can most fully receive it is also a powerful way to take responsibility for having your own needs met. In the #1 New York Times bestseller The 5 Love Languages, you’ll discover the secret that has transformed millions of relationships worldwide. Whether your relationship is flourishing or failing, Dr. Gary Chapman’s proven approach to showing and receiving love will help you experience deeper and richer levels of intimacy with your partner—starting today. The 5 Love Languages is as practical as it is insightful. Updated to reflect the complexities of relationships today.

What Your Mother Couldn't Tell you and Your Father Didn't Know | John Gray

Men are still from Mars and women are still from Venus. This resource guide contains relationship skills that will help you and your mate sustain a lasting relationship that only grows richer with time. Mars and Venus Together Forever educates the different sexes on: What your mother couldn't tell you and your father didn't know, What women need most and men really want, How men and women think and feel differently, The language barrier -- men speak "male" and women speak "female", The seven secrets of lasting passion, And much more Filled with lively anecdotes, revealing exercises, and profound common sense, Mars and Venus Together Forever will help men and women explore new frontiers in their relationships, communicate effectively with each other, and discover the secret of "happily ever after."