When we are in conflict, we reveal what we think and feel. Conflict is, in a sense, a form of intimacy, a word that originates from the Latin intimare, “to make something known.”3 It is a time when we give our partners access to ourselves. Conflict allows us to be seen and known (which we innately desire) and to be heard and understood (which are foundational components of emotional intimacy). What if we approached conflict in our marriages with a reimagined purpose of cultivating emotional intimacy?
