***The Silent Treatment Your hope in treating them this way is that they will get the message that they have displeased you. You would not punish your partner for trying to punish you. You act as if they are invisible, not responding to them at all or giving them a very minimal and withheld response. What you are taking away is your approval, and for children and approval-dependent adults, it is a powerful form of control. The Consequences While it may seem to you to work for the moment, there are huge negative consequences following the silent treatment. They have done something wrong in your eyes and deserve to be punished, deserve to have your "love" taken away. Of course, what you are taking away is not love at all, since love is unconditional. It is you doing this that is allowing the silent treatment to work to control you. If you were taking loving care of yourself and taking 100% responsibility for your own feelings, here is what would be going on inside: You would be telling yourself: "My partner is choosing to punish me rather than take responsibility for his or her feelings. Their anger and resistance may show up in others areas that cause problems for them and for you. While your partner may scurry around to try to please you and get you to reconnect with him or her, the fact that you have so deeply disconnected creates feelings of heartache in your partner that may eventually lead to the end of the relationship. While they may comply to avoid your withdrawal of approval, inwardly they are likely to feel lonely and heartbroken - feelings that they can't handle - so they become angry and resistant to manage the feelings. Whatever I may or may not have done that he or she doesn't like, I am not responsible for how he or she is dealing with it, and I have no control over him or her. You would be bringing love inside, letting yourself know that you are a good person and deserving of love. You would get out of range of your partner's energy - taking a walk, reading a book, calling a friend, or doing something else to make yourself happy. You would keep your own heart open, not going into anger or judgment toward your partner, so that when your partner decides to open again, there is no residue for you. It is a withdrawal of approval, and can cause much fear in people who are vulnerable to this. You are giving people the silent treatment when you Expensive Homes Millington-TN shut down to them, closing your heart and refusing to interact with them or acknowledge their presence. Children feel unloved and unlovable, developing deep beliefs about their inadequacy. What seems to work for the moment may lead to exactly what you don't want in the long run. When Your Partner is Punishing you With the Silent Treatment