Dr. Morgan Cutlip on Why Understanding the Mental Load Is Critical to the Success of a Relationship

We are in for such a fun conversation today with Dr. Morgan Cutlip, author of A Better Share: How Couples Can Tackle the Mental Load for More Fun, Less Resentment, and Great Sex, which is out April 8. In today's episode, Morgan teaches us why understanding the mental load is so important to a successful partnership. She teaches us that the mental load is comprised of three parts—physical, cognitive, and emotional, and we talk about that, as well as the cycle of unmet needs, the PAR acronym and what it means for both men and women, and what the death spiral is in a relationship. We also talk about what the default partner versus the non-default partner means as far as ownership of a task, and so much more from this great book. Morgan calls herself a “lifelong lover of all things relationship,” and she has worked in the field of relationship education for over 15 years alongside her dad, Dr. John Van Epp, who is the founder of Love Thinks and the developer of multiple relationship education courses that have been taught to over one million people worldwide. Morgan is also the author of the 2023 book Love Your Kids Without Losing Yourself: 5 Steps to Banish Guilt and Beat Burnout When You Already Have Too Much to Do, and she earned a master’s degree in human development and family science and a doctorate in counseling psychology. She’s also just so easy to talk to and so much fun. I hope you enjoy this episode as much as I enjoyed having this conversation.

A Better Share: How Couples Can Tackle the Mental Load for More Fun, Less Resentment, and Great Sex by Dr. Morgan Cutlip