Avoidance.

Stress on your relationship compounds when you avoid conflict.

Other words for avoid:

ignore,

dismiss,

minimize,

dodge,

my favorite, side step.

Avoidance can feel as though you are providing a neighborly service for your relationship; I am, “keeping the peace” and “not rocking the boat”.

In the short-term, avoidance is rewarding. It frees you from conflict anxiety and provides the illusion of peace. But, longterm avoidance builds and often surprises you with out-of-context reactions. These reactions can create more damage and will certainly involve the conflict you were previously avoiding.

Avoidance is not a sustainable way to manage conflict.

Journal Prompt: Process and describe any conflict building up for you.