Dear Athena
Issue date: 2/28/08 Section: Entertainment
Dear Athena,
My boyfriend and I have been dating for a year now, and we are in love. Our relationship is going really well except for this one problem; we buy each other too many gifts!
It seems like we are always celebrating an anniversary, birthday, or holiday. Don't get me wrong, I love giving and receiving gifts, but I feel like a relationship based on gifts is unhealthy.
How can we change our relationship to be based more on love and not gifts?
Too many Gifts
Dear Too Many Gifts,
Many couples experience gift overload especially during the first year of being together.
There's something about that first year that makes people want to give more than usual.
The best thing to do is to sit down together and make a list of all of the anniversaries, birthdays, and other holidays you celebrated during the past year.
Look closely at the list and figure out what is really special and worthy of buying a gift.
Try to make those few dates special and you will free your relationship from being based on gifts.
Dear Athena,
I am a freshman, and I am having a hard time transitioning into college. My boyfriend calls me nearly three times a day, and he is constantly asking me questions about how I'm doing and if I need his help with anything.
He is smothering me to the point where I am being distracted from my studies.
How can I tell him to back off without ignoring him or hurting his feelings?
Thanks, Too Much
Dear Too Much,
Believe it or not most freshmen are experiencing the same feelings as you and your boyfriend in this fragile time of transition.
Your boyfriend is struggling to let you go, and instead of taking a st,ep back to let you spread your wings, he is holding you on the ground.
One way to stop all the phone calls and excessive questions is to set up a time each week to call him and fill him in on your week.
My boyfriend and I have been dating for a year now, and we are in love. Our relationship is going really well except for this one problem; we buy each other too many gifts!
It seems like we are always celebrating an anniversary, birthday, or holiday. Don't get me wrong, I love giving and receiving gifts, but I feel like a relationship based on gifts is unhealthy.
How can we change our relationship to be based more on love and not gifts?
Too many Gifts
Dear Too Many Gifts,
Many couples experience gift overload especially during the first year of being together.
There's something about that first year that makes people want to give more than usual.
The best thing to do is to sit down together and make a list of all of the anniversaries, birthdays, and other holidays you celebrated during the past year.
Look closely at the list and figure out what is really special and worthy of buying a gift.
Try to make those few dates special and you will free your relationship from being based on gifts.
Dear Athena,
I am a freshman, and I am having a hard time transitioning into college. My boyfriend calls me nearly three times a day, and he is constantly asking me questions about how I'm doing and if I need his help with anything.
He is smothering me to the point where I am being distracted from my studies.
How can I tell him to back off without ignoring him or hurting his feelings?
Thanks, Too Much
Dear Too Much,
Believe it or not most freshmen are experiencing the same feelings as you and your boyfriend in this fragile time of transition.
Your boyfriend is struggling to let you go, and instead of taking a st,ep back to let you spread your wings, he is holding you on the ground.
One way to stop all the phone calls and excessive questions is to set up a time each week to call him and fill him in on your week.
Be the first to comment on this story