Without adequate communication skills, we are asking for trouble.   When there is mis-communication, we can experience endless frustrations in  the form of wasted time, emotional pain due to thinking this was meant when this was not meant, loneliness, anger, despair, and many other unpleasantries.  Though of course, there are ups and downs in any relationship, by practicing emotionally intelligent skills, we can nip the problem in the bud….before it gets big and crazy and ultimately destructive.  YES, A RELATIONSHIP OF 10 YEARS WAS GOING TO DIVORCE COURT BEFORE THIS COUPLE CAME TO SEE ME. They learned AND PRACTICED the communication skills I taught them, and within 3 sessions, they were together again.  They could not believe that at the root of their problem was lack of good communication skills. This is one of many positive outcomes from those learning these basic but crucial skills.