Maintaining a healthy marriage necessitates ongoing investment. And most couples face difficulties in their marriage and love. However, navigating them together can be among the most rewarding when done intentionally. Couples are bound to have ups and downs, but it takes daily loving acts to keep our relationship thriving. And when it comes down to make-or-break, something has to give.
When your marriage is in trouble, changing the dynamic requires serious effort on both sides. Patience, commitment, and a genuine desire for change are required. Rekindling a spark in your marriage is certainly possible with a sincere attitude. You simply need to take steps towards a more loving and intentional relationship while also remembering to love yourself.
Three Effective Steps Couples Can Take to Increase Love in Their Relationship
1. Love Yourself
A marriage can wither or fall apart for a variety of reasons. It could be distance, lifestyle differences, or just plain stress. However, one of the most common reasons people fall out of love is because they first fall out of love with themselves—or never learned to love themselves in the first place.
Growth can be frightening when you become complacent, even when you know it is what will bring about healthy change. And, while it may seem counter-intuitive, refocusing your attention and focus on yourself can be just as rejuvenating for your relationship as all the dinner dates and expressions of gratitude in the world.
Encourage your partner to do the same while you’re at it. It’s likely that it’s exactly what you both require to feel as desirable, interesting, and confident as the day you met.
2. Take a Memoir Walk
It’s easy to forget where your shared love began in the midst of all the drama and chaos of everyday life. The butterflies, the enticing uncertainty, the preening, and the frivolity. The intoxicating pleasure of love.
Reflecting on your favourite memories and experiences as a couple can be a very healing process for partners who have lost their spark. Take a tender moment (or several) to pause and reflect on your relationship’s positive milestones before attempting to make any major changes to its future.
Memories such as the first time you met, made love, or said “I love you” can elicit a rush of fluttery feelings and tender realisations about what initially drew you together, and perhaps what still does. Change your focus to what you love about your partner, what drew you in!
3. Practicing Gratitude
Simply put, everyone wants to be recognised. And in the midst of a long-term marriage, it’s easy to forget how true this is. However, gratitude and affirmation are not things that can be expressed once and then forgotten. They require consistent nurturing to be effective.
Many relationships deteriorate as a result of a chronic lack of appreciation and gratitude. Don’t let that happen with yours. Tell your partner how much you appreciate what they do. Share with them when you think they’re hot, when you’re proud of them, and when you adore the way they greet you.
Don’t wait for your partner to have a bad day before saying something nice to them. Every day, at any time, rejoice in the small pleasures. A little bit of gratitude can go a long way.