Lies at the altar : the truth about great marriages / by Robin L. Smith.

Includes index.

True to myself -- From this day forward -- Show up and grow up -- To love, honor, and cherish -- Forsaking all others -- For better or worse -- For richer or poorer -- In sickness and in health -- Till death us do part -- Eyes wide open -- How to write true vows to live by -- It's never too late to renew your vows -- Light three candles -- Marriage exercises.

Psychologist Smith advises couples how to take wedding vows, made in earnest and in innocence, to a level where they can be used to build a happy, healthy, satisfying and long-lasting marriage. This book is for couples who are planning marriage, are newly married, or who have been married for years. Dr. Smith addresses the unspoken needs, unasked questions, outrageous expectations, and hidden agendas that often linger beneath the surface of the wedding vows and appear later to cause power struggles, suffering, and feelings of hopelessness in marriages. Calling "truth" the secret ingredient of great marriages, Dr. Smith teaches individuals and couples how to find the truth within themselves and their partners, whether they are heading to the altar, suffering in an unhappy marriage, divorced, or simply want to bring more satisfaction and intimacy into their relationship.--From publisher description.