Please note that the content in this piece refers only to non-abusive relationships.

According to the National Council for Mental Wellbeing, 70% of people in the United States have lived through one or more traumatic experiences. Likewise, research has found that about 70% of individuals across the globe have endured at least one traumatic experience in the past. In light of these figures, it’s highly likely that for any one of us, we’ve either faced trauma, we’re very close to someone who has, or both.

In a romantic relationship, how is opening up to a partner connected to the journey of healing after trauma? In a recently published study, a team of researchers examined this question. They recruited almost 200 people with a personal history of trauma who were in a relationship. The team examined factors such as the tendency to reveal personal information in general, being open to sharing one’s inner emotional world with a partner about past trauma, their partner’s reactions when they’ve talked about trauma, symptoms of........

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