A busy mother says she has transformed her marriage by repeating a simple phrase each morning.
Felicity Harley found her life as a working mum-to-three had become monotonous and stressful some months ago.
But a friend suggested she watch a podcast by a therapist, which she claims has since changed her life.
In her TED talk, Esther Perel, 61, says: "The survival of the family depends on the happiness of the couple.
"Actually go about achieving them [your goals] by investing the time, patience, and space necessary with our partners."
And now, magazine editor Felicity has altered the way she views her family and relationships .
"So, now every morning, especially Saturdays, I repeat my new mantra - 'it’s up to me to make my marriage sweeter'," she said.
She believes this 30-second manta has helped her embrace her chores and hectic life.
The woman, from Australia, added: "Her [Esther's] hours of podcast wisdom can be summed up in a few sentences: marriage is damn hard, but every day is new and fresh and can be sweeter.
"Yes, it really is that simple. You’re the fly-on-the-wall during her [Esther] client’s therapy sessions which cover everything from infidelity, to intimacy, sex and romance. It’s actually changed how I act in my marriage."
Writing on parenting site Kidspot , Felicity continued: "I spend washing 33 pairs of socks; wiping putrid smelling wee from the tiles around the toilet (boys, aim better next time); clearing the cluttered kitchen bench tops of paper/Kinder Egg toys/dummies/Lego etc; disinfecting the bin because the squashed banana glued to sides is just too manky... I could go on and on.
"I get crankier and CRANKIER and then go silent. By that, I mean not talking to dad [Tom].
"Tom’s never going to clean up the banana or wee, but he does get me a coffee every morning. And for that I am forever grateful."
Felicity married Tom Harley, 40, in 2008.
She first met the Australian rules footballer when she interviewed him for Cosmopolitan.
Ms Perel, a New York City therapist, has been counselling couples since 1983.
The woman, whose TED talks have more than 20 million views, is herself a married mum and has helped society understand modern relationships, Felicity said.
