Category: Love & Romantic Relationships

Getting Older and Becoming Invisible December 23, 2009

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Dr. Bernard Starr

As people age, they stop being seen as resources and start being overlooked. Armand DiMele and guest Dr. Bernard Starr, PhD, Psychologist, examine how aging strips perceived value in relationships and society, why midlife crisis follows lost potency, and how accepting invisibility may be healthier than fighting it.

Why Love Fades Over Time December 22, 2009

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Stephanie D'Ambra

Love doesn’t just end, it erodes through unmet needs and biological programming. Armand DiMele argues that fading attraction follows a natural but not inevitable course, drawing on evolutionary drives and caller stories, including one man’s struggle with touch after years of violation.

When Love Turns Into Irritability December 17, 2009

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Stephanie D'Ambra

Why do people treat their closest partners with more contempt than strangers? Armand DiMele and co-host Stephanie D’Ambra, LCSW examine the hormonal roots of relational irritability, tracing how shifts in dopamine, prolactin, and testosterone erode compassion, and offer practical steps for breaking the cycle.

The Biology of Bitterness in Love June 18, 2009

Host: Armand DiMele

Why do couples who genuinely love each other turn bitter over time? Armand DiMele traces the neurochemistry behind romantic deterioration, drawing on Marnia Robinson’s book “Cupid’s Poisoned Arrow” to explain how our mating and bonding drives conflict, and what couples can do to preserve real intimacy.

Negotiating Fairness in Love with Dr. B. Janet Hibbs June 9, 2009

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Dr. B. Janet Hibbs, Dr. William Peter Atwood

Fairness in relationships is not tit-for-tat bargaining but a deeply learned language from childhood, argues Dr. B. Janet Hibbs, author of “Try to See It My Way.” Armand DiMele and co-host Dr. William Peter Atwood explore how unmet childhood needs quietly poison adult partnerships, and how couples can replace blame with direct claims.

How Depression and Moving Affect Family Bonds June 3, 2009

Host: Armand DiMele

Frequent family moves double teen suicide risk, antidepressants quietly erode sexual desire and romantic attachment, and childhood wounds quietly shape adult partner choices. Armand DiMele connects these threads through research and caller conversations, arguing that what couples fight about is rarely what they are actually fighting about.

The Symbols We Live By April 29, 2009

Host: Armand DiMele

Every person becomes a symbol to someone else, and that projection shapes desire, conflict, and love more than most people realize. Armand DiMele traces how childhood wounds turn strangers into father figures, mother figures, or pain symbols, and invites callers to examine the symbols they embody and chase.

The Male Side of Menopause with Dr. Henry Hess March 19, 2009

Host: Armand DiMeleGuests: Dr. Henry Hess

Most menopause conversations leave men out entirely. Armand and gynecologist Dr. Henry Hess examine how hormonal shifts reshape attraction, bonding, and sexual connection, and why men’s ignorance of the process quietly destroys long marriages. Covers the history of hormone therapy, oxytocin, and foreplay as daily practice.

What It Takes to Keep Love Alive March 12, 2009

Happy couples are rarer than we admit, and Armand DiMele argues that keeping love alive requires a growth mindset, emotional honesty, and resisting the slow drift into sleepwalking togetherness. A caller’s reflection on being a Black gay man navigating impossible masculine expectations gives the conversation real weight.

How Memory Shapes the Love We Seek March 5, 2009

Host: Armand DiMele

Every time we recall a memory, we alter it slightly, building love lives on reconstructed rather than real experiences. Armand DiMele traces the neuroscience of memory from protein synthesis at the synapse to the ways callers mourn lost parents, idealize childhood, and search for love modeled on images that may never have existed.