1 OctDating Your Partner: 4 Unconventional Ideas by Dr. Konstantin Lukin, Ph.D. Have you ever felt like your relationship has hit a consistent rut? Maybe you’ve been together for years, and feel like you’re doing the same thing over and over again? Research suggests that sharing new and exciting experiences significantly improves one’s connection to his or her significant other. The reason behind that is simple. When one identifies an experience as pleasurable, neurotransmitters dopamine and norepinephrine are released, and bonding occurs. That’s partially why a common suggestion to “just go out,” to dinner or to the movies sometimes doesn’t cut it to re-make or continue growing a strong bond. To truly fall in love all over again, a couple needs to create adventures that are truly novel and exciting. So with that said, here are a couple of things you can do: 1) Identify what you both find exhilarating in your personal life. Is it experiencing new food flavors, or is it going for a jog? Take an inventory of the top five things that you find most exciting. Ask your partner to do the same. Share these together, and try and find ways to include him/her in it. Read the Full Article on Psychology Today Author Dr. Konstantin Lukin, Ph.D. Dr. Konstantin Lukin is a psychologist, author, speaker, and researcher specializing in men’s issues, couple’s counseling, and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). He is the Director and Co-Founder of the Lukin Center, northern New Jersey’s premiere evidence-based psychotherapy practice. The Lukin Center emphasizes evidence-based treatments such as emotion-focused therapy for couples, and cognitive and dialectical behavioral therapies for children, adolescents, and adults. Since its inception, the Lukin Center has grown to include testing and assessment as well as medication management services. As a therapist, Dr. Lukin focuses on providing support and practical feedback to help clients effectively address personal life challenges. He integrates complementary modalities and techniques – including cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), schema-focused therapy, and emotion-focused therapy (EFT) – to offer a personalized approach tailored to each client. With compassion and understanding, he works with his clients to help them build on their strengths and attain the personal growth to which they are committed. Dr. Lukin has extensive experience in private practice, conducting outpatient therapy with children, adolescents, and adults. He also has extensive clinical and research experience with people of all ages and their families, including those diagnosed as severely and persistently mentally ill, in both inpatient and outpatient settings. He has co-led groups for children, adolescents, and adults diagnosed with OCD in an outpatient setting. He is trained and experienced in administering a variety of psychological test batteries including neuropsychological, cognitive, and personality assessments, and he has conducted diagnostic and intake interviews and prepared evaluation reports. Dr. Lukin is a graduate of the Honors College at SUNY at Stony Brook, and earned his doctorate from Fairleigh Dickinson University.
