ABSTRACT
E and F came to me for couple's treatment because of a seemingly concrete external problem. E had wanted to move to another part of the state "to get away from the crazy, over inflated lifestyle of money, cars, and commutes." She wanted a slower paced, easier lifestyle in which she could "get back to what is important, a sense of ourselves and nature." F was in agreement but E felt he had been "dragging his heels and never really making an effort to make it happen." F said, "I have been making the effort. I have been researching the move every month almost, for a long time. She is just too moody and critical." In fact, they both had been talking for years about moving out of the city to the country somewhere where the cost of living was less. They read magazines, did internet research, and talked with people who had made such a move. But, even thought it seemed like they were on the same page with this idea, E said that every time they were close to actually acting on their dream, "F finds something wrong with the plan and shoots it down. I am so frustrated at this point, I feel at a crossroads. I am getting too old to just be on hold. 132I can't go on living like this. I need to see some kind of proof that F really means what he says or I think we are in serious trouble."
