Blog

Is The Way You are Listening Damaging Your Relationship?

Think you're listening—but your partner says they don’t feel heard? You might be using “Not Listening Skills” that frustrate your partner and escalate conflict instead of resolving it. This post breaks down common listening mistakes and points you toward an easy resource for upgrading your communication, repairing old hurts, and rebuilding connection.

Psychologist Dr Hughes Testimony for Amber Heard Exposes DV Gender Bias

Forensic Psychologist Dr Dawn Hughes, PhD testified on Amber’s behalf during Amber Heard and Johnny Depp’s “You defamed me.” “No, you defamed me.” trial. As a counselor and author of several books about partner abuse, I have been following the Depp/Heard case for a long time. I transcribed and analyzed Dr Hughes’ testimony to check it against other evidence and what I know about mental health and partner abuse.

For this post, I’m focusing on the domestic violence part of Dr Hughes’ testimony and what it tells us about her objectivity and gender bias, as well as the gender bias of other DV advocates, resources, and treatment programs.

Forensic Psychologist Dr Curry Testimony Johnny Depp v Amber Heard Trial

On Day 9 of the Johnny Depp v Amber Heard Defamation trial, forensic Psychologist Dr Curry testified that she diagnosed Amber Heard with Borderline and Histrionic personality disorders, and made other determinations relevant to the case, after examining records pertaining to Amber's history and performing 12 hours of assessment interviews with Amber in person.

I watched most of Dr Curry's testimony live. She is impressive: thorough, knowledgeable, and unflappable.

Her testimony is worthy of taking a look at to decipher who to believe in the competing DV accusations of this former couple. It's also worthy as a study of psychology best practices.

Histrionic Personality: Traits and Relationship Risks

Histrionic personalities are flamboyant, melodramatic attention-seekers. They may be the life of the party and draw a partner in with their enthusiasm, charm, and seduction, but then wear the partner out with their need to be the center of the universe.

Explore dramatic HPD traits, how they affect intimate partners, PLUS key differences from narcissism and borderline personality disorders.

Marriage Counselor, Dr Laurel Anderson Testimony, Johnny Depp v Amber Heard Def Trial

A video deposition of Dr Laurel Anderson, Johnny Depp and Amber Heard's couples' therapist, was presented during Johnny's WaPo article defamation trial on April 14, 2022. As a therapist and author of several books about partner abuse I've been following this case for a couple of years and was particularly interested in taking a detailed look at this testimony. 

As I worked my way through Dr Anderson's testimony, I developed more and more questions about the therapy and this post became much more extensive than I anticipated.

What Is Borderline PD? Signs, Traits, and Relationship Struggles

Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is a serious mental health condition marked by instability, intense emotions, and chaotic relationships. Learn how it shows up, how it can affect partners, and where to find help and support.