When you hit a slump in a relationship, try to see them as if they were a stranger.

Sometimes, we get wrapped up in our problems and history. Maybe just one uncomfortable moment changed something.

One way to clear the slate is to simply sift your own thinking so you look at them like they were a complete stranger again, and you meet for the first time. If it was good, it’ll suddenly be good again, if it was never supposed to be, it’s likely you’ll see that clearer now, too, maybe they grew away from you or you grew away from them, and now that you see them as a stranger, you see the distance between you clearer.

If you’re facing divorce, especially look at your spouse as if they were a stranger. It’ll help you deal with them easier, too, when you’re not thinking of them as your property or the person who left you or hurt you. The sense of loss will feel less acute, when you think of them as a stranger anyway.

Good or bad, this trick might sift things back into where they should be.

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