{"podcast":{"title":"Marriage Therapy Radio","slug":"marriage-therapy-radio-716729","podcast_index_feed_id":716729,"rss_url":"https://rss.art19.com/marriage-therapy-radio","website_url":"https://art19.com/shows/marriage-therapy-radio","image_url":"https://content.production.cdn.art19.com/images/73/05/66/00/73056600-70e5-4ac5-a567-c66dc00415b3/f16716c292d04172eddbd3d55a6bbf82edff468857593764be3ee90b739efcc599e2c074f31cefac2fee7cb5e52330967084efdc2ed8d93e27dc789dbc2f189f.jpeg","author":"MTR","episode_count":432,"summary":"Look... every couple struggles. You fight too much; you're bored; sex is either okay (or rare); maybe you're even considering divorce. OR... maybe your marriage is actually pretty good, but you want to go deeper. In this podcast, straight-talking marriage therapist Zach Brittle tackle the most common complaints virtually every marriage experience. Along the way, they reveal the science behind strong relationships and talk about what's really going on for couples. Topics include conflict, communication, compatibility, money, sex, in-laws, infidelity, time-management, future dreams, and more. If you want relief? A deeper connection? A new way forward...? Then you've got to find out what's REALLY going on in your marriage. That's what this podcast is about. You can learn more about Zach, and his alternatives to traditional therapy at marriagetherapyradio.com .","last_synced_at":"2026-07-07T16:22:53.819472+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/marriage-therapy-radio-716729"},"episode":{"title":"Ep 413 From Pattern to Partnership | Session 3 with Brian and Kristen","slug":"ep-413-from-pattern-to-partnership-session-3-with-brian-and-kristen","published_at":"2026-02-24T08:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/marriage-therapy-radio-716729/ep-413-from-pattern-to-partnership-session-3-with-brian-and-kristen","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/marriage-therapy-radio-716729","url":"https://marriagetherapyradio.com/2026/02/24/ep-413-from-pattern-to-partnership-session-3-with-brian-and-kristen/","audio_url":"https://rss.art19.com/episodes/cf3e2f5a-09e9-4e57-a80a-2206ae15b88f.mp3?rss_browser=BAhJIg90cmFuc2NyaWJyBjoGRVQ%3D--952c5701c84ad333c69d5faa668f8177091704f0","summary":"In this final session of the three-part series, Brian and Kristen reflect on what has shifted—and what still feels tender. They don’t have “big crimes” in their marriage. No betrayal. No catastrophe. What they have are patterns. And the courage to look at them. This episode centers on their struggle around the language of “over-functioner” and “under-functioner.” What started as a helpful framework became a pain point—especially for Brian, whose family-of-origin history makes accusations of “not doing enough” land deeply. Zach helps them untangle what’s really underneath the label: It’s not about over-functioning. It’s about expectations. It’s about connection before correction. It’s about role clarity. It’s about appreciation. Through a simple example—a snowy driveway on the day they learned a friend had died—the couple sees how context, grief, and unmet expectations can spiral quickly. But they also discover something new: Brian doesn’t need fewer requests. He needs more connection and appreciation first. Kristen doesn’t need better labels. She needs help carrying the mental and emotional load. In the end, they shift from asking, “Who’s over- or under-functioning?” to asking: Who’s showing up right now—and how can we show up better for each other? Key Takeaways Labels can illuminate—but they can also wound Context (stress, grief, hunger, fatigue) matters more than theory Connection before correction changes everything Over-functioning often hides an unspoken request for help Defensiveness often protects an old family-of-origin wound Appreciation softens difficult conversations “What do you want more of?” is more useful than “What do you want less of?” Playing the long game means collaborating, not competing Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoic…","meta_description":"In this final session of the three-part series, Brian and Kristen reflect on what has shifted—and what still feels tender. They don’t have “big crimes” in…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":2395,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/marriage-therapy-radio-716729/episodes/ep-413-from-pattern-to-partnership-session-3-with-brian-and-kristen/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/marriage-therapy-radio-716729/ep-413-from-pattern-to-partnership-session-3-with-brian-and-kristen.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}