Loving an Avoidant Partner: Understand Dismissive Attachment Style to Bridge Emotional Distance and Create a Secure Relationship Paperback – September 24, 2023

This book is an insightful and compassionate guide for those struggling in relationships with emotionally distant partners. It is both informative and practical, offering actionable strategies to improve communication, foster emotional intimacy.

I found this amazing book that totally turned things around for me. I've had some issues with getting close to people, especially my partner, and I wanted to work on that. This book tackled my problem and opened my eyes to fears and wants I didn't even know I had. It nailed down my emotional ups and downs and helped me understand why it happens.What's cool is that it isn't just about lovey-dovey stuff. It's a gem for dealing with people in general—friends, family, coworkers. The book even tackles that lonely feeling you get when your partner is avoidant, but it does it from their side, which is a game-changer.Honestly, this book really opened my eyes. It gave me practical ways to handle situations with my partner and beyond. I can't recommend it enough—I learned a ton!

Although this book is not so much written for experienced therapist, it is written for the individual who knows little about attachments and their significance in relationships. It offers a basic understanding of attachment styles and how being involved with an avoidant partner has its challenges. It did not focus on the reasons why and or what does a securely attached person get out of being involved with an avoidant partner. It focused solely on how to help the avoidant person overcome their dismissive styles. Thus it may help more the avoidant person than the secure one. Nevertheless the lessons it describes are universal and will reach all who wish to learn more about developing unconditional loving relatedness. It is very repetitive in its style and messaging, but perhaps the ideas posed need to be repeated over and over again to be integrated into insights. It is not advanced deep psychological theories, nor is it referenced from scholarly psychological sources, but it is relevant and moving nonetheless.

Disclaimer: I only got through the first three chapters. I even did the journal prompts (that weren’t very thought provoking)This book is redundant from the start. The vocabulary reads unnaturally at times. There are many punctuation and grammatical errors. More than one chapter (I looked ahead) ends with the author asking for a review. I thought that was bizarre. I feel like the first three chapters I read could’ve been written in a short essay, that’s how redundant. Idk it was weird. The flow was weird. I felt like the author rearranged the paragraphs and excessive headers and never revisited it for flow. It was “all over the place” or scattered.There are some action steps to take, but the author also says that your avoidant partner has to commit to wanting to change and play an active role in this process. That’s simply not true.

Reading through this has helped reduce some of the stress I have been experiencing! It has given me valuable insight into key areas of the Avoidant's mind - allowing me to pave a more viable action plan to work both on myself and on our relationship. I'm going to reread key chapters of this book most definitely. If you're struggling to understand an Avoidant, I would highly recommend this book!

Unfortunately, this book is basic and overly simplistic.

All the same information I’ve seen in online searches. Some pretty cheesy metaphors made it feel a bit comical or cartoonish.

I recently read this guide, and it was a game-changer for me. As someone who has been coping with relationship anxiety as a result of my avoidant partner, this book provided the empathy and understanding I required. What sets it apart is the emphasis on understanding avoidant behaviors rather than just coping with anxiety. Krista Cantell's personal touch and ideas make this guide approachable and effective.The communication skills provided were like a breath of fresh air, encouraging openness rather than withdrawal. I admired the author's candor about her own difficulties, which made me feel less alone on this road. The portions on managing anxiety and making relationship decisions were quite useful. Overall, this is a must-read for anyone coping with relationship anxiety.