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title: Love, Relationships, And Power Dynamics
date: 2025-10-09T00:00:00
author: Charlie M.
category: SIGNAL
---
I was sipping my lukewarm coffee this morning, trying to convince myself to get out of bed earlier tomorrow, again. Sunlight creeping through the blinds like a gentle nudge, but somehow I just wanted to scroll Instagram a bit more. Yeah, like that's a productive use of time. Anyway, so there I was, scrolling past yet another couple’s perfect life photos… you know, the ones where they look like they’ve got it all figured out, all loved up in some picturesque location. And I start thinking, like, what’s the deal with love and relationships? And how does power sneak its way in?
I mean, I’ve read somewhere, maybe a psychology article or something, that power dynamics are a real thing in every relationship. But like, how do you even notice them? I tried to remember a time in one of my past relationships where the balance felt truly equal. It’s fuzzy. Was it ever? I don't know.
I remember this one time, maybe a couple of years ago, my partner at the time wanted to decide where we’d go for our vacation. I was all in for the beach, but he had this mountain cabin thing in his head and before I knew it, we were staring at pine trees instead of waves. It didn't feel like I lost a battle or anything back then—just what we ended up doing. But, was it a power thing? I guess it depends who's telling the story.
So, then I'm thinking, do relationships always have this leader-follower or decision-maker role, or can they be truly balanced? I’ve definitely seen stats (somewhere, I think around 70%) claiming that most people perceive an imbalance at least once in their relationships. But maybe—just maybe—sometimes it’s just something we tell ourselves because we want to feel in control or something.
I’ve tried those relationship quizzes online—yeah, go ahead and judge—that supposedly help you figure out your relationship's dynamic. Do they work? No clue. I deleted that app right after because it made me overthink way too much, and who needs that kind of spiral?
And then there’s love itself. Does love level things out, or does it blur who’s holding the cards? Some say love is this equalizing force, but I’m not sure. I mean, if every love song and book suggests anything, love is powerful but also kind of messy, right?
Yesterday, during a workout, while I was trying not to think about how unfit I am, a thought popped into my head about whether love is enough to squash out power struggles. Like, does anyone really win an argument about whose parents to visit for the holidays? At some point, you just end up doing the thing that's easiest, right? Or maybe I’m just lazy.
I don't have answers. Like, is it a matter of finding someone whose balance of power matches yours, or do you just figure it out as you go? Do all relationships have an element of compromise that just tilts the scales slightly one way or another? And honestly, what does a healthy power dynamic even look like—who even decides that?
So here I am, still sipping my now-cold coffee, more questions than answers. Maybe it's something you spend your life figuring out. Maybe every relationship is just a roller coaster of figuring out who gets to choose dinner and who picks the Netflix show. And that’s okay. Or not. I guess I’ll just wait for tomorrow’s scroll to see if I find another perfectly imperfect couple that has me asking all this all over again.