#259: How to Communicate with a Defensive Partner

#259: How to Communicate with a Defensive Partner

From On Attachment by Stephanie Rigg

May 26, 2026 · 18 min · Season 1 · Episode 259

About this episode

This episode discusses how to effectively communicate with a partner who is easily defensive, exploring the impact of defensiveness on relationships and connection.

Subscribe to my YouTube Channel Does your partner get defensive easily, even when you feel like you weren't being attacking or critical? If so, today's episode is for you. Being on the receiving end of someone's chronic defensiveness can be extremely frustrating and disheartening, and it can feel like a real block to connection. But the way we typically respond — by making someone wrong for their defensiveness — can entrench the very pattern we're hoping to shift. Links Free workshop on anxious-avoidant relationship dynamics Understanding Your Avoidant Partner course Secure Together couples course

People in this episode

Host: Stephanie Rigg

Topics covered

  • communication
  • defensiveness
  • relationships
  • connection
  • conflict resolution

Keywords

  • defensive partner
  • communication
  • relationship dynamics
  • conflict
  • anxious-avoidant

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