Happy & Healthy with Amy

When Connection Hurts: Communication Breakdowns

• Amy Lang • Season 2 • Episode 7

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Ever feel like you keep having the same argument over and over again? Poor communication isn’t just annoying—it can trigger chronic stress, mess with your nervous system, and even increase your risk of cognitive decline.

In this episode of Happy and Healthy with Amy, we talk about the communication traps many women fall into during midlife—and how to build brain-healthy, connection-rich conversations again.

What to Listen For:

  • [00:04:22] The series recap on how connection impacts cognitive decline
  • [00:06:34] The difference between communication vs. connection
  • [00:07:34] The 5 key ingredients of brain-healthy relationships
  • [00:09:24] What happens in your brain when communication breaks down
  • [00:11:01] The subtle but damaging signs of emotional misattunement 
  • [00:12:20] What codependent communication sounds like
  • [00:16:15] How to tell the difference between caring and controlling
  • [00:19:56] How fear-based communication damages your brain’s memory, empathy, and executive function
  • [00:21:57] 3 brain-healthy communication tools you can use today to protect your relationships and your mind

In this episode, you’ll learn how to spot the patterns of codependency and control in your conversations, why they’re linked to chronic stress and brain aging, and the exact steps you can take to shift toward connection-driven communication.

Listen now, and take the first step to improving the quality of your relationships so social connection is brain protective — not stressful.

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