I'm absolutely no relationship expert, marriage counsellor or even been in so many relationships that I'd have a lot of previous experience to draw from. In no way am I saying I have the perfect relationship or that it's any better than all the others out there but after hitting the three year mark in my relationship, I believe I've got at least some good advice to give. I mean, I must be doing something right, yes?
#1 That thing they call TRUST
Yes, I know. It's the obvious one that any relationship post will tell you but really, it is the most important thing to build and maintain a healthy relationship. You have to trust that they're in it for the right reasons, that they're being completely and utterly honest with you and that they're going to be there no matter what the circumstance. Without this, you can just bid farewell to the whole idea of partnership.
#2 Knowing when something has to be brought up
It's so easy to get into your head that relationships are an easy road to happiness. You're absolutely right in thinking that they can be one of the best things to happen to you and there's so much fun to be had when you're part of one. Don't get me wrong though, it's not all just an easy downhill ride. You have to know when certain conversation topics need to be brought up between the two of you. If you keep little things bottled up, they end up coming out so much worse than even you thought they would. So be honest, and talk things through, even if it's something little and silly like thinking that you do most of the housework or whatever. It's not worth a big argument after keeping it in for so long, is it?
#3 Know what the other wants in life
Personally, I think this ones a no brainer but others obviously don't even think about this! Your goals and dreams for life need to somewhat align with your partners. And they also need to eventually include them too! It's definitely going to cause problems if one of you wants to travel the world until they're 60 and not start a family but the other has no interest in travel and dreams of having a huge family. It's just not going to work. Things like this usually cause people to not even start a relationship but sometimes people hang on for other silly reasons.
#4 Make time for each other
You have to regularly set aside time for each other. Even though I live with my boyfriend and we see each other every day, we still make sure we book in 'date nights'. Spending quality time together away from the usual night of being home and having to do housework or just doing your own thing in different rooms, is really nice. Simple things like going out for a meal, seeing a movie or even going for a nice walk are perfect and keep the relationship alive and healthy.
#5 Keep up the surprises
At the start of a relationship, all you want to do is write sweet notes to your other half, surprise them with little gifts or do little things to make them happy. This doesn't have to stop just because you've gotten comfortable. After over three years, I still love getting a nice little note every now and again and I love doing little things for him like bringing home their favourite sweet or buying him something he keeps forgetting to get for himself. This really lets your other half know that you're still thinking about them all the time and you're still doing what you can to make them happy.
To repeat myself, by no means am I a relationship expert but these little tips just work for me and I believe they help in keeping the spark in a relationship. After all, don't we all want that fairytale ending?
No comments:
Post a Comment