Lifetime Connections

Exploring women's relationships in families and friendscapes

Suzanne Degges-White Ph.D.

Entitlement Is the Crux of Narcissistic Behavior

You can fall into a relationship with a narcissist before realizing what’s happened. Grandiose and vulnerable narcissists know how to woo someone they think can fill their needs.

Ditch Toxic Positivity for Tragic Optimism

Suffering and grief are not things to be avoided or brushed aside. We cannot get “past” these feelings. We must move through them.

'The New Normal' Drives 'The Great Resignation'

If you're eager to join the wave of The Great Resignation, make sure that you're bringing a new perspective to the next new job you take.

7 Ways Toxic Positivity Can Destroy a Relationship

Life is messy and sometimes bad things do happen. Ignoring our pain and disappointments can compromise our health, wellbeing, and relationships.

Is Technoference Damaging Your Relationships?

Virtual connecting was dictated by the pandemic, but now that we're able to gather again, we need to put down the phone and focus on the folks in the room.

Gratitude May Save Your Life

Whatever you have in life and wherever you are, you can find a reason to be grateful and doing so can change your life in very important ways.

The Chemistry of the Best Friendships

Friendships can be the key to good health and longevity and it is totally natural to feel that you are "in synch" with your friends, neural imagery provides the evidence.

Virtue Signals Can Be Misleading

Ideally, people would always “practice what they preach” and we’d know a person through their actions, not just their virtual virtue signals.

8 Signs of a Toxic Friendship

When a friend behaves more like an adversary, you may need to bring the relationship to a close.

Empathy Can Drain You, but Compassion May Sustain You

Empathy, as a stand-alone response to another's suffering, can be draining. Compassionate responses add action to emotion, and this nourishes us in ways that empathy alone cannot.

Never Satisfied: Narcissists Crave Their Narcissistic Supply

Narcissists often get their narcissistic "supply" by feeding off the people willing to give them the attention they desperately crave.

Holidays with a Narcissist: 5 Things You Should Not Do

Narcissists have no limits when they are set on sabotaging the holidays for others.

Forgiveness Can Free You From the Past

Forgiveness is a gift that you give yourself by offering it to others.

What Does Bipolar Disorder Look Like?

Bipolar disorder can be difficult to accurately diagnose and still more challenging to manage once an accurate diagnosis is made. These suggestions can help.

Don’t Let Yourself Become a Victim of Your Fear

We've witnessed too many tragedies lately, and these may be keeping us from enjoying events we used to love. Here's how we can take control of our fear before it takes control of our life.

10 Ways That Better Boundaries Can Improve Your Life

If you believe others ask too much of you, perhaps you're not asking enough of them when it comes to honoring your boundaries.

The Many Problems Holding a Grudge Can Cause

There's a saying that living well is the best revenge, and that's certainly true when it comes to letting go of resentments and grudges.

The 7 Types of Friends, and Which Is Most Essential for Our Happiness

There are many degrees of connection that our friendships may represent, and research shows that one type may be more important to well-being than many of us thought.

The 13 Traits of a Narcissist

Not everyone who has a big ego or struggles with intimate relationships is a narcissist, but there are some key traits professionals use to make the diagnosis.

Where Does Implicit Bias Come From?

Don't let your System 1 brain make decisions about other people or circumstances before your System 2 brain is allowed to take a deeper look.

Personal and Social Identity: Who Are You Through Others’ Eyes

Personal and social identities are intertwined and work together to create a complex image of who we are in our own eyes and who we are in the eyes of others.

Are Narcissists Smarter or Sexier than Other People?

Falling for a narcissist can be easier than you'd expect, especially when they are offering what you think you might like to have in your life.

Borderline Personality Disorder or a Mercurial Disposition?

Mood swings may be normal, but explosive anger and irrational behaviors are not.

Falling in Love Too Fast Can Be Hazardous to Your Well-being

Dangerous partners can be sexy, but if you fall in love too quickly and too often with manipulative, controlling partners, you put your well-being at risk.

Pandemic Burnout and Compassion Fatigue

Has compassion for the wellbeing of others waned as the pandemic drags on? That's a normal reaction for folks who feel empathy and compassion.

Why Narcissists Collect Relationship Trophies

If your new romantic partner still displays souvenirs of past relationships, this may reflect a tendency for “trophy hunting."

8 Flavors of Love

Erotic satisfaction, pragmatic relationship, enduring romance, and kinship with your family are just a few of our unique forms of love.

You Do You: How Being Yourself Pays Off

When “You Do You,” it positively affects almost every aspect of your life.

Civility May Be a Cultural Casualty of the Pandemic

Do you feel cheated out of life by the pandemic and tired of following pandemic-related rules? This is normal, and so is wanting to take back control. But be kind.

Cultivate Your Friendscape with Care: How Will You "People Your Life?"

How will your post-pandemic friendscape look? Is it time to do some careful weeding or are you ready to plant new relationships and enliven your social landscape?

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