“A great relationship doesn’t happen because of the love you had in the beginning, but how well you continue building love until the end.”
Aren’t you very busy living a hectic life? Well, it’s good to be busy, but sometimes you get too much involved in work and other important things that you might start neglecting someone you love. They might be waiting for you all the time.
Please don’t make them wait for that much! Your relationship with your life partner should be your priority and the most important thing for you in your life. The hustle and bustle of daily life indeed make you take your beloved for granted. But this slowly weakens your relationship. Neither your nor your partner’s need are fulfilled, and eventually, a permanent gap is created.
However, it is not your mistake. Sometimes, we don’t understand how much effort is required for keeping relationships alive and strong. We don’t realize that it is really important to keep a spark in our relationship. When things start going out of hand, you might think about couple counselling, but sometimes it’s too late.
Let’s find out why it is important to keep your relationship alive.
Also read our blog on How to manage expectations in a relationship
Why Do You Need to Keep Your Relationship Alive?
A spark in a relationship is important for many different reasons, such as its benefits for mental health and emotional well-being and creating stability in overall personality. Having someone closest to your heart and whom you trust and love unconditionally is a wonderful and healthy feeling. You can rely on someone at the time of need, someone who can fade away all the loneliness and make you feel complete and happy whenever you think about yourself with that person. A partner is the greatest blessing you can have.
Stressful situations are a part of life, but you can face all difficulties, challenges, and hurdles when your beloved is with you. A strong relationship gives you a reason to live. But to keep your relationship alive, you have to put in the effort. Maintaining a spark in a long-term relationship is not a piece of cake. You have to compromise and give your heart and soul.
Let’s move ahead and find out how to keep a relationship alive for the long term.
Ways To Maintain a Spark in Your Relationship
So how can we make sure our relationship thrives? There are many tips you can follow to keep your long-term relationship alive. Some ways to maintain a healthy and happy relationship with your partner are as follows:
1. Spend Quality Time With Each Other
Spending quality time with your partner has a huge impact on your relationship. But what quality time exactly means? It means a moment when you are complete with your partner. You are not thinking about your work, friends, or other things. You do not necessarily need to spend this time somewhere outside.
Your home is a good place to spend quality time as well.
Time spent together and in love is a perfect quality time. It allows your relationship to develop and grow. At this time, you put down your cell phone and shut off your laptop and tablets. All you do is express your point of view about love and affection and focus on what your partner has to say. Quality time is when you give undivided attention to your loved one. And this is something that is required to keep the spark alive in your relationship.
2. Use Love Languages
What are love languages, and why are they important to keep a relationship alive? Love languages are expressions by which people receive and show their love to their partners. Therefore, it is important to know your partner’s love language and allow them to be aware of yours. This is quite helpful in making both of you feel appreciated and loved.
According to a book written by Dr. Chapman, there are five love languages, Words of affirmation, quality time, acts of service, physical touch, and receiving gifts.
Expressing your love through spoken words and appreciation are the words of affirmation. Quality time is giving your partner sometime of undivided attention, whereas acts of service mean doing nice things or helping out your beloved in daily chores. Physical touch, which is getting close to your partner, is equally important to keep a spark in your relationship. Giving and receiving gifts is also another sign of affection.
3. Plan Surprises Every Few Days
Showing your partner that you do think about them is very important. Plan surprise very often to make your loved one feel special. Tell them to be free on a specific day but don’t tell them your plans. Keep it a surprise. Then spend the time doing something that you both love and enjoy: watching a romantic movie together, planning a weekend getaway, or even going for a candlelight dinner. This will make your partner realize how much you care about them and how special they are to you.
4. Cultivate Gratitude
Gratitude, in other words, thankfulness, is something that allows people to acknowledge the goodness in their lives. Cultivating gratitude to your partner is equally important as expressing love. Expressions of gratefulness reflect positive psychology and are associated with increased happiness and better mental health. Cultivating gratitude doesn’t belittle you. Instead, it is something that shows how big you are at your heart. It is an important aspect in maintaining your marriage and relationship and allowing it to grow.
5. Go for Couple Counselling
Couple counselling or couple therapy is a kind of psychotherapy that is meant to help the partners in a relationship resolve or recognize any challenges or conflicts that may have a negative impact on their relationship.
Couple counselling, also called relationship therapy, is not just meant for couples facing extreme issues in their relationships. Instead, there come times when even the happiest and healthiest couples require little help to pass through a certain phase of life. There are always some ups and downs, no matter how successful your marriage or relationship is.
Divorce should be the last thing a couple should ever consider during challenging times in their marriage. Marriage counselling or couple therapy has various benefits that allow couples to understand the problems and their solutions. In addition, counselling is a form of encouragement that helps both partners better accept each other.
Also read our blog on a related topic – How to deal with relationship anxiety
Conclusion
Having a life partner is nothing less than a blessing. That one person is your love, friend, teacher, secret keeper, and whatnot. Nobody would want to lose such a beautiful relationship at any cost. However, ups and downs come in everyone’s life, no matter how perfect your relationship is. The best approach is to talk with your partner rather than keeping things bottled up inside of you. The only thing this will do is hurt you.
No doubt your partner is supposed to be with you, but sometimes, he and even you need space for certain things. So, learn to understand, forgive, express, compromise, respect, and give space in a relationship. It would certainly help in keeping a relationship alive for a lifetime.
