Do you always feel like you are solving the problems in your relationship? Not feeling heard or like your partner isn't carrying their emotional weight? Your partner takes up a lot of emotional space but isn't available for your needs? You are doing the majority of emotional caretaking for your partner and family?

In this episode, we're getting real about emotional labor in relationships—what it is, how it shows up, and why it so often goes unnoticed. If you’ve ever felt like the one doing all the work to maintain emotional connection, this conversation is for you. We discuss how to recognize early signs that someone may not be capable of real emotional reciprocity, and what it means to stop doing it all yourself. From burnout and resentment to building more equal partnerships, this episode is about shifting the dynamic—for good.

🧠 Topics Covered:

• What emotional labor looks like in romantic relationships

• The invisible toll it takes—fatigue, resentment, disconnection

• Why we often ignore early signs that someone can’t (or won’t) hold emotional space

• How to stop overfunctioning and start asking for reciprocity

• What a more balanced emotional exchange looks like

• Tools for setting boundaries and communicating your needs

• When emotional labor becomes a form of people-pleasing or self-abandonment

• How to tell if it’s time to step back and take care of your own nervous system

  
  

🎵 Music: "asleep next to you" by SSS from the album Open Cycle.
Find her music on Bandcamp: https://sssssss.bandcamp.com

🌐 Connect with Kate:

Website: ⁠katemarlenelove.com⁠Email: ⁠hello@katemarlenelove.com
Instagram: @katemarlenelove
TikTok: @katemarlene