Dear Kate,
My fiancé and I have been together for 2 years. Yesterday, I was arguing with him and it escalated to yelling, which is very, very rare for us. Push came to shove, as they say, and my husband-to-be smacked me on the arm. It wasn’t hard enough to leave a mark, but it scared the hell out of me because it felt unprovoked. Should I try to work through this with him, or is this a sign that I should cut and run?
Thank you,
Really Cold Feet
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Dear Really Cold Feet,
First off I want to start by stating that people have a wide variety of opinions on this kind of thing, most of them very strong, and that can easily heat up a conversation fast. So, while I am going to give you my opinion – since you asked for it and, well, because it’s my job – please remember that I only have a very miniscule amount of information about the two of you from your question. You alone have to be smart, alert, and conscious of your partner’s patterns and behavior within your relationship. Only you can know your own boundaries. For some, a harsh word would be enough to cross the line into inappropriate behavior, and for others, smacking someone across the face when they are being rude is okay.



