If Any Relationship In Your Life Has These 5 Things, You’re Likely More Loved Than You Realize
Olgalioncat | Pexels Many people have had a wide range of experiences with intimate relationships. Some have experienced relationships where the honeymoon stage seems to linger forever. Others might have experienced a relationship that was uncertain from the start.
Though these experiences are never easy to go through, they help us form the idea of what we want and need in a relationship. Though personal preferences vary, several principles behind a loving relationship remain universal.
If any relationship in your life has these 5 things, you’re likely more loved than you realize:
1. Effort
When looking for love, we want to be with someone who wants to be with us. Simple, right? When dating someone, we should ensure that the efforts both parties are putting forth are equal and that this person accents your life (and you accent theirs!).
Complementing each other’s personalities is vital and will help ensure you can make it in the long run, and couples therapist Richard Drobnick agrees, explaining that loving well means “you incorporate fun, humor, and lightheartedness into your relationships.”
2. Communication
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Getting to know one another, your goals, dreams, and everything in between comes down to one thing only: communication. You have to express yourself clearly in a relationship. Be transparent about what you want, what you’ve been through, and where you want to go.
Respectfully talk to each other, and when things get tense, make sure you are not saying hurtful things. Take a step back to regain composure and pick it back up once you’re both in a better frame of mind.
3. Encouragement
A relationship can only go so far if the partners don’t support each other’s dreams. When you are invested in your partner and want to see them succeed and achieve their goals and dreams, the commitment you have will only grow stronger. So, take time to regularly check in and see what plans and desires they have. Then, you can construct a plan to achieve it together. Teamwork makes the dream work.
4. Laughter
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You want to spend more time and grow closer to someone who brings you joy. So, be sure to find ways to be silly with your partner. Check out a local comedy show, watch a sitcom, or even just ham it up and dance ridiculously in the kitchen while cooking together.
Though these moments may seem trivial, they all add up to the big things. Life coach Pamela Aloia concurs, explaining that shared laughter (think: inside jokes), “gives way to compromise and negotiation and creates a deeper understanding and respect for each other.”
5. Exploration
Romance can get lost in the mundane day-to-day. This is why partners must explore new things together. This can be trying something new, like an activity, craft, or new recipe. It can also evolve into exploring new things in your intimate life.
Whichever way you cut it, variety is the spice of life. I am honored to say that I’m blessed with a partner who is all of these things for me. So much so that I recently made her my wife. Lucky me.
Theresa Faughnan is a writer and contributor to Unwritten whose work focuses on lifestyle, family, and mental health topics.
