The Virtual Couch

The Virtual Couch


Why You Fell for Your Partner (and Why You Keep Fighting Them) — Part 2

November 04, 2025

In Part 2 of Why You Fell for Your Partner (and Why You Keep Fighting Them), Tony Overbay, LMFT, continues the story of Jack and Jill — a fictional couple built from hundreds of real couples he’s worked with in therapy.


But this time, the story shifts. What happens when children grow up with emotional safety, repair, and consistency? What does love look like when it’s modeled, not managed — when connection feels safe instead of chaotic?


Tony explores how secure attachment is formed through co-regulation, how parents teach emotional safety through presence instead of fixing, and how those lessons echo into adulthood — shaping how we love, argue, and connect.


Through rich storytelling and neuroscience-backed insights, you’ll learn:

• What healthy co-regulation sounds like in real life

• Why conflict in secure relationships feels safe, not scary

• How consistent emotional repair rewires the brain

• Why secure partners are drawn to emotional availability, not intensity

• How “earned secure attachment” and therapy can break old patterns


This episode isn’t just a look at what healthy relationships sound like — it’s a roadmap for how to build one.


Because your past might explain your patterns, but it doesn’t have to define your future.


00:00 Introduction and Recap of Part One

01:23 Understanding Attachment Styles

02:25 Exploring Jill's Childhood

03:16 Exploring Jack's Childhood

04:58 Healthy Emotional Regulation

06:44 Jill's Healthy Emotional Development

21:10 Jack's Healthy Emotional Development

31:28 Jack and Jill's Relationship Dynamics

35:04 Healthy Communication in Relationships

36:06 The Importance of Secure Attachment

37:08 Navigating Stress and Boundaries

40:06 Conflict Resolution and Compromise

41:43 Building a Secure Relationship

52:55 The Role of Childhood in Adult Relationships

01:02:29 The Power of Therapy and Self-Work

01:08:52 Final Thoughts on Relationship Growth


Contact Tony at contact@tonyoverbay.com to learn more about his Emotional Architects men's group.


And visit https://julie-dejesus.com/cruise to learn more about Tony and his friend Julie De Jesus's "I See You Living" cruise, a 5-night Western Caribbean Cruise from January 24-29, 2026 aboard the Royal Caribbean Cruise Line. 


To learn more about Tony's upcoming re-release of the Magnetic Marriage course, his Pathback Recovery course, and more, sign up for his newsletter through the link at https://linktr.ee/virtualcouch


Available NOW: Tony's "Magnetic Marriage Mini-Course" is only $25. https://magneticmarriage.mykajabi.com/magnetic-marriage-mini-course


You can learn more about Tony's cornography recovery program, The Path Back, by visiting http://pathbackrecovery.com