[Note: the last post began a three-part series helping wives understand the way their husbands think. You can read that post here: Understanding the Mind of the Man You Married. All these posts are adapted from Gary’s newest book, Loving Him Well: Practical Advice for Influencing Your Husband. This post also has much relevant information for husbands, so I hope both genders will take advantage of this information.]
One of the most common frustrations in marriage is that some wives think their husbands are nearly robotic when it comes to emotions, and some husbands may think their wives are overly emotional. Stereotypes aren’t always true and can even be destructive, but in this instance, when it is true, it really is “a brain thing.”
Every man has been told that women want us to “listen” instead of trying to solve their problems, and that’s a fair request. But wives need to know that holding back from problem solving is literally (that is, physiologically) painful to a man.
Dr. Louann Brizendine, a neuropsychiatrist who studied at Yale and Harvard and is now on the faculty of UCSF Medical Center, offers the following common interplay between a husband and wife:
DANIELLE: “I just want Neil to listen, give me a hug, and tell me how he knows I feel. But he goes into robot mode and starts telling me what I should do.”
NEIL: “That’s not how I see it. I already told her I feel bad about all the pressure she’s under. She wants me to listen to her and be sympathetic, but then she won’t listen to my suggestions . . . Seeing her cry and not being allowed to help her is torture to me.”
Wives, will you please consider Neil’s last sentence: “Seeing her cry and not being allowed to help her is torture to me”? You think he’s being insensitive; to him, not trying to make her feel better is what seems insensitive.
There are two emotional systems that work through our brain. Bear with the technical lingo for a moment, but basically women tend toward the MNS (the mirror- neuron system), and men toward the TPJ (the temporal- parietal junction). A woman expresses empathy by mirroring a person’s distress and concern because her brain clicks toward the MNS form of emotional processing. The male brain expresses empathy by a process called “cognitive empathy,” which focuses brainpower on stopping the problem instead of understanding the problem. It’s still empathy, though it may not feel like it for you. In order to solve a problem, other areas of the brain have to be stilled, which in this case is the MNS. The TPJ system works to protect the male brain from being “infected” by other people’s emotions so it can fully focus on solving the problem (Dr. Brizendine discusses the brain science behind this in her book The Male Brain).
Two days after writing about this concept for my book Loving Him Well, Lisa requested special prayers. She had a very bad reaction to a very bad antibiotic and was still suffering some side effects of neuropathy. Almost immediately after she described her numb lips and a few other effects, my first words were, “Maybe I should take you to the Mayo Clinic this summer and get everything checked out by experts.”
Totally wrong thing for me to say/do!
Number one, we live in Houston. Anything you can find at the Mayo Clinic you can find here. Number two, Lisa simply wanted me to listen, empathize, and pray for her. And because I was researching brain differences, I knew that’s what she wanted. I had been duly warned by Dr. Brizendine and had even put some of this in writing, but my default brain response remained, “How can I fix this?”
We men can and should learn to listen first, but maybe God knew what he was doing when he wired this “fixit” mentality into the male brain. At the very least, you might want to give your husband the benefit of the doubt. Instead of seeing him as insensitive, consider the fact that his response is what seems most sensitive to him. He’s trying to be sensitive, and it’s confusing to him when you won’t let him be that way. It’s like having an adolescent son who is hurting, and you instinctively reach out to touch him— and he acts like your physical touch is repulsive and pushes you away. You can’t imagine that he doesn’t want to be hugged, and it’s both hurtful and confusing to you that he doesn’t. You want to show that you care, and he won’t let you! That’s how your husband feels when you resent him for wanting to get involved or offer advice.
I’m not saying you have to give in and let him fix things; I’m saying it’s important to learn to understand him, talk about this dynamic, and figure out a way for the two of you to address this together. You may well know how to fix the problem even better than your husband does, and it’s completely legitimate for you to just want to talk about it.
I’ve learned (though I’m far from perfect in living this out) that when Lisa shares a frustration, my first and only response is to be understanding and empathetic. Several hours later, it’s all right for me to come back to her and say, “I’ve been praying and thinking about what you shared with me earlier. Have you thought about maybe doing this?” If there are hours between her sharing and my “solution,” she typically receives it a lot better. I suggest talking over this solution with your husband. You may not want to hear his suggestions, but in stopping them, you are asking him to shut down the empathy function in his brain. That’s risky. Instead you can set up a win- win by explaining, “Honey, when I share a hurt, what I really want is for you to hear me, understand me, and show empathy. There’s a time and a place for problem solving. When I first share the problem with you isn’t that time or place. Wait at least a few hours.”
J. Parker says
I literally had this conversation with my husband in the car yesterday heading to church! I shared something that was bugging me, and he immediately went into Fix It Mode. I turned to him and said, “Twenty five years we’ve been married, and you still haven’t figured this out? All we women want is for you to acknowledge our feelings. That should be the first thing out of your mouth. Then, and only then, can you suggest something. Why is it so hard for men to get that?!”
Ah, it turns out it really is hard, perhaps even painful. Thanks for reminding me how we need to bear with each other and appreciate our God-given differences.
Charmaine says
While I was reading this, tears started running down my face…..for years I have not shared worry, pain or frustration with my husband, because I could not handle his responses. This lead to burn-out…and now I realize why. By God’s grace, my heart has been transformed and thus my marriage is showing beautiful signs of recovery. Gary, thank you for your books and related messages – we need it.
Kay says
I think the “It’s not about the Nail” video is appropriate here. 😂
It has helped my husband when I am direct and upfront about the times that the problem actually isn’t the problem, rather the problem is how I feel about something, so he can fix the problem by helping me work though those emotions. So he still stays in fix-it mode but we’ve redirected what he is fixing, if that makes sense. But this really only applies to some of those things in life where there are no fixes. Other times it really IS about the nail!
Molly says
This is a very intriguing blog to me. I would really like a Mr. Fix It in my life and believe I could use one. I am not trying to diminish the frustrations of women who have been irritated with their Mr Fix It, but I would love one. I have a tendency to get stuck in my MNS mode and, at times, have wanted to “crawl in a hole and wait for someone to rescue me.” I think the tendencies of Mr. Fix Its are cute and funny, to tell you the truth. As long as he is not trying to be a control freak about the situations that could arise, I know my tendencies and could use a Mr. Fix It in my life. I personally like healthy debates on negotiable issues where some problem solving might be needed and could use more of them. If he would be open to team debates on some problem solving ideas and even an occasional disagreement…well…just because we can…knowing that we are trying to come up with a solution…with some affection mixed in there, it could be argued a Mr. Fix It is possibly who God might think I need. Sounds glorious to me.
Lynn Miller says
What do you csll it when his fix it is always angry and seems like your problem is more like an Inconvenience that he wants to make go away????
Gary Thomas says
Lynn,
Anger is something entirely different from what we’re talking about. And sitting down with a mature counselor can help you understand if your husband really does lack empathy and simply wants the problem to go away for his sake (not healthy at all), or whether as a couple you’re misreading each other’s cues.
Patricia says
Very well said. I see it better now. Thank you. I especially like how we can respect and appreciate each other’s differences.
Chris Duell says
No arguement here but I would like to throw out another concept. My initial reaction is that I see how a husband who has worked towards mastering the empathy and understanding approach without providing solutions could also backfire! After a certain amount of time, the wife begins complaining that her husband never helps her with her problems! Kind of a double-edged sword if BOTH sides are not in tune with each other. Thoughts?
Gary Thomas says
Chris,
Your question answers itself, fortunately, when you add “if BOTH sides are not in tune with each other.” That’s really what it’s all about, and what this series of blog posts is aiming at, helping both spouses understand the way our minds work so we can stay more in tune with each other.