What is a perpetual problem?

This entry describes a perpetual problem as a difference that returns because it sits on lasting traits, values, or needs, rather than on a task that can be finished. It notes that many marital disagreements are of this kind, and that the work is often how the pair lives with the difference, not how they erase it.

What this entry does not do

It does not say every repeating fight is unsolvable, and it does not replace the entry on gridlock.