Love is probably the most intense feeling that we humans are capable of. It can make us fly, but it can also make us fall into deep abysses. Elena-Katharina Sohn set up her own business more than ten years ago to provide advice for those suffering from lovesickness and successfully runs the agency “Die Liebeskümmerer” (the romantic film of the same name appears on Netflix just in time for Valentine’s Day). Her fourth book about love and heartbreak was recently published – it’s high time for a conversation about what makes a happy relationship.
Ms. Sohn, you have been caring for people with heartbreak for 13 years. Have the topics that clients bring to you changed over the years? In the beginning it was mostly about people wanting to deal with a separation – i.e. heartbreak in the classic sense. Over time, more and more diverse problems arose, often within a relationship. That’s why today I prefer to talk about heartache with love rather than heartache.
Every one of us knows the pain of love. What are the classic topics that are addressed in this context? There are women who cannot forget their ex and still hold on to the hope that he will come back at some point. Or men who have been cheated on or have cheated themselves. Typical topics include separations, communication problems in the relationship and involuntary singleness. Sometimes we also have clients who, in middle age, have not yet had any experience with relationships and sexuality and would like to change that. But it rarely happens because the topic is unfortunately still relatively shameful.
They like to emphasize: happiness in life comes before happiness in love. What does this mean?
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