Happy And Meaningful Relationships Require Much More Than Just Love

We all want our romantic relationships to be strong, happy, meaningful, and long-lasting. We all want to find someone who will accept us and cherish us the way we are. Someone who will show us what true love feels like.  

So, the question is: What makes a good relationship?

The first thing that probably pops into your mind is love. Perhaps you’ve often been told, and perhaps you believe in that yourself, that love is the most important ingredient in a relationship. But, is this really so?

I’ve known a lot of couples that were deeply in love with each other and yet their relationships failed. I have been there myself as well.  I had to see my relationships fall apart in front of my eyes until I found the one that showed me what it’s like to be in a happy and meaningful relationship. I’ve realized that this kind of relationship requires much more than just love.

I’ve realized that a happy and meaningful relationship teaches you what behaviors strengthen a relationship and what behaviors ruin it. It makes you become more aware of your feelings, needs, wishes, desires, and expectations. It shows you how wonderful it is to be with that one person that makes you feel complete and whole.

And most importantly, it teaches you essential lessons about relationships, and in what follows, we’ve presented the 7 most valuable ones:

1. If someone truly loves you and wants to be with you, they’ll be with you. They’ll never allow anything and anyone to ruin your happiness, destroy your love, and tear you apart.  Moreover, they will let you know how important you are to them and make sure you always feel protected and safe.

2. If someone really cares about you, they’ll never put you in a position to question their feelings for you. They’ll never string you along or avoid committing to you by telling you lame excuses, such as “it’s not the right time” or  “I need to focus more on my career now.” Because it’s never the right time until it’s the right person.

3. You learn that kissing, cuddling, date nights, and romantic surprises are sweet but they’re not commitment. They’re not a willingness to endure the difficulties that appear in every relationship sooner or later.

4. You learn that every meaningful and successful relationship requires much more than just love. It requires hard work. It requires patience, understanding, compassion, respect, commitment, compromises, sacrifice. It requires work on yourself – to be willing to grow personally and become a better version of yourself.

5. When you truly love someone you accept them for who they are, with all of their faults, quirks, insecurities, and fears. Maybe their bad habit of leaving their personal stuff all over the place or talking loudly annoys you.

But these are things you don’t try to change because they’re a part of the person you love and they make them special. You learn to accept and cherish your loved one with all their imperfections.

6. Arguments don’t tear you apart  – they bring you closer. They strengthen and improve your relationship.

7. Last but not least, you learn that when you’re finally in a good relationship, you’re completely satisfied with your choice. You don’t look around to find someone better. You don’t look for your happiness in other men or women. You feel relieved and lucky to have found the one you’ve always wanted to be with.