Lack of effective communication is a key factor in breaking up what would otherwise be a healthy relationship. To stay mentally healthy and raise mentally healthy children, it is essential to communicate effectively with them. It is equally important to have effective communication with your friends and other important people in your life.

If you need help because you experience an excessive amount of difficulty managing stress or experience a considerable amount of anxiety on a daily basis, it may be due to ineffective communication and consequently unhealthy relationships with others.

So what is effective communication? The dictionary defines the effective word as having an expected or expected result. When you communicate, you seek to understand and be understood. You are exchanging information.

Communication is a receptive process of both sending expressive messages and receiving messages. Lack of effective communication may be due to a problem at one or both ends of the process.

We all want to communicate effectively. For effective communication, these three secrets, when used, can help build healthy relationships and avoid a wide range of social problems, from hurt feelings and anger to friendship breakdowns and even violence.

The first secret is to listen to the other person. I mean really listen. Listening to the other person has real psychological value. Look at the other person and maintain eye contact. Nod, smile, and occasionally make affirmative statements to show that you are paying attention. And, most importantly, wait for the other person to complete a thought without interrupting to express your own ideas.

The second secret is to ask questions and seek clarification. Don’t always assume that you understand what the other person is saying. Asking questions and seeking the opinions of others and making affirmative or rewarding statements indicates that you are truly seeking to understand what they are saying.

And the third secret is to paraphrase what you heard so you can be sure you have the right idea. Paraphrasing someone else’s comments adds impact to your own communication. By acknowledging someone’s opinion, assimilating it, and repeating it, you reinforce and amplify it for the other person. Paraphrasing can often turn a heated discussion into a constructive conversation.

Start putting these three secrets of effective communication into action today and you will see your relationships improve and even stay on a higher level. Additionally, you will begin to experience an overall improvement in your own mental health.