EMPOWERMENT OF COUPLES (EoC)

A JOURNEY TOWARDS A HAPPY & HARMONIOUS MARRIED LIFE

Marriage is a union of two individuals, sacred in its philosophy of coming together, living together & growing together, till the final days of life through mutual sharing & caring for each other, extending far beyond the rituals & customs, in a carefully cultivated and nurtured environment of conjugal bliss & happiness. Unfortunately, with the progress of human society and its ever-increasing complexities, stress & strains, and multifarious challenges in socio- economic domain, coupled with ever increasing quest for individual space & freedom, this institution of marriage is under severe strain endangering the longevity of conjugal relationship & domestic happiness.

Present day realities

Present day realities

• Rapidly changing mindset towards marriage as an Institution
• Break down of Joint Family system, & growth of nuclear families
• Quest for increasing individual space & freedom
• Rising expectations in terms of economic independence, career aspirations, & power to make decision or participate in decision making
• Increasing availability of knowledge & information through information technology & media and its power to influence one’s thought & action.

Its effect on family & the institution of marriage

• Lack of meaningful communication with spouse & within the family
• Difficulties in developing common understanding & mutual adjustment
• Erosion in mutual respect, and increase in distrust
• Struggle in managing home & career, especially for women
• Difficulty in spending quality time with spouse & other family members
• Growing distance between the family members, both physical & psychological
• Leading to ultimate break down in relationship, even reaching the point of no return

BJS as an organization that is alive to issues of social concern affecting the society at large identified this as an area of intervention with a practical, workable solution. After a considerable research and deliberation, it came to the conclusion that the problem calls for empowerment of couples for enhanced maturity & understanding to deal with the challenges, and came up with a well-designed intervention for the married couples to create awareness of the issues involved and bolster their inherent capability of identifying the problem areas on their own & equip them to decide and implement appropriate actions to mitigate those in their journey towards a happy conjugal life together with the family.

Empowerment of Couples program involves both husband & wife, and also the in-laws. It is built on the following premises:

• Understanding
• Tolerance
• Support
• Patience
• Compromise
• Communication
• Bonding
• Adjustment

The program is designed to deliver the following

FOR THE COUPLE:

• Helps to bring the couple closer
• Enhances communication between them
• Helps understand that each individual is a different soul with own likes, dislikes, knowledge, experience, attitudes, beliefs, expectations etc.
• Makes them understand & respect each other and respect the differences
• Makes husband realize and accept that it’s his primary responsibility to make wife comfortable in the new home

FOR THE LARGER FAMILY:

• Greater & meaningful communication amongst the family members
• Importance of allowing time & space for each member of the family
• Importance of enhanced caring & sharing
• Sharing responsibility & sacrificing for larger interest of happiness & conflict erosion

Salient Features of EoC program:

• Two day workshop on weekends for couples married for not more than ten years
• Comprises interactive modules
• Provides opportunity for free expression of views, feelings, experiences & expectations
• Enhanced effectiveness due to group & peer learning
• Emphasizes importance of care, love, affection, respect & trust for each other
• Helps in establishing healthy inter personal relationship within the family