I know that he's not trying to use strength against me, he's just so strong that I often feel trapped, even when I'm not. I feel like I can't move, so I just stop moving, instead of figuring out an intelligent way to deal with it. I have grappled with all different kinds of people, some who were almost three times my size, and I have never felt as hopeless as I sometimes do when I work with Joe.
I can actually do pretty well (and even submit him), as long as I don't allow my mind to get in the way. When I forget that it's him, and just do what I do, it goes much better for me, but that's difficult when it's just the two of us for an entire class. I have a hard time keeping my emotions in check when I'm working with him, and he is the only person who I have become so annoyed with that I got up and walked away from in the middle of a roll.However, what happens on the mat stays on the mat, so despite how emotional I may get toward Joe at times when we're working together, it doesn't affect our relationship. I know that he is not going to baby me when we're at the dojo, and I appreciate that. He pushes me, but he doesn't go over the line into injuring me, and I know that he just does it to help me improve. He may bruise me, and crush me, and make me feel like I got steam-rolled when we're in class, but afterward, when we're at home, he treats me like a queen. Sometimes after class he will even take my braids out for me, when I am too tired to lift my arms. And that, Amy, is how we manage to keep living together! ;)