Enhance your love life by keeping passion and commitment in your romantic relationship instead of draining your emotional resources by following these tips.
1. Being Independent Is a Good Thing
There’s a difference between spending lots of quality time with someone and being in a co-dependent relationship. Co-dependency is unhealthy, often leading to one-sided, destructive relationships, but it’s more common than you think. Just remember that you’re a valuable person in your own right with your own job, skills, friends and interests. Two independent people can enjoy a fulfilling relationship without straying into co-dependency – keep your own life and friends yet still enjoy your time together. It sounds so simple but we speak to so many singles who ended up so entangled in their previous relationships that after a few years they realised that they don’t see their friends very much and family time doesn’t exist. Mix things up so that you spend time together with different friendship groups whilst booking in quality time your partner.
2. Understand Your Partner’s Personality
We all have a unique personality and that brings with it pros and cons that you have to understand if you want a healthy relationship. Taking the time to see the good in every situation and remembering that we are all imperfect not only proves you’re committed to the relationship in the short-term, but it also shows that you’re committed for the long-term. So, be honest and accept your partner’s personality flaws. After that, don’t pander to them, but understanding why they act the way they do and maybe you can help each other grow.
3. Learn to Appreciate the Little Things
A healthy relationship isn’t based on grand gestures. Sure, you don’t want to miss celebrating valentine’s day, birthdays and anniversaries, but a healthy relationship shouldn’t only be celebrated on the big occasions – appreciating the everyday occurrences will make every day special. As time goes by, it’s seemingly easier to focus on the things that get on your nerves rather than the things you love about your partner. Yet once you remember to start appreciating the morning cup of coffee or how you both sing along to the same tune on the radio, your relationship will feel healthier.
4. Don’t Neglect Date Night
At the beginning of a relationship, every meeting is date night. You go out somewhere special and you spend quality time together, but that seems to trail off as you get stuck into routines that are all about fulfilling duties and paying bills without leaving you any time for your relationship. Combat this by ensuring you set aside at least one night per month for date night. Throw some rules into the mix if it helps – no talking about work or bills or family issues. It can be as simple as a meal and a trip to the cinema, but just make it about you and your partner rather than anything else.
5. Let Your Hair Down
One mark of a healthy relationship is that you have fun together – and not just in the physical sense. Play board games or video games together, set cooking challenges or gardening challenges. You know your partner and the things you like doing together, so harness that knowledge to make your relationship healthier in the long term. As an added bonus, you’ll have some fun in the short term too.