Last Updated on March 3, 2024 by Asfa Rasheed
Relationships go through changes and evolutions as time goes by. If you’ve been in a relationship for a while, you might notice that things aren’t as spicy as they once were. As you grow and build a life together, new responsibilities and stressful experiences take a toll.
Keeping the relationship alive takes work, but it doesn’t have to be stressful. Here are some simple ways to bring back the magic in your love life.
Table of Contents
Prioritize Self-Care
It may seem counterintuitive, but sometimes the best thing you can do for your relationship is to take care of yourself. Both parties must practice self-care to build the emotional intelligence, resilience, and wellness to care for someone else.
Self-care isn’t all bubble baths and “me-time.” To practice self-care, both you and your partner need to take care of your bodies and minds. This means creating healthy sleep patterns and ensuring you have the right mattress in place (here are a couple of suggestions to get you started). It means digging into any unresolved issues and learning to process past trauma, and practicing stress management.
The better you take care of yourself, the more you’ll be able to give to your relationship.
Schedule Unplugged Time
Social media scrolling and digital distractions put a strain on relationships. To keep the magic alive, you and your partner will need to find time to dedicate to each other without distractions.
Consider scheduling a period of unplugged time to spend together every day. This time could be in the hour before you head to work in the morning or before bed at night. It doesn’t have to be an extended period, just enough to give each other your full attention for a little while each day.
Set Standing Date Nights
The most successful relationships are between people who never stop dating. It’s essential to carve out time to spend together, whether it’s going to dinner once a month or setting an at-home happy hour once per week.
Consider setting a set day of the week or month on the calendar as a standing date night to prevent other responsibilities from sneaking up. Make a rule that you can’t cancel the date night for other events but can be moved by a day or two if you both agree.
Learn Your Love Languages
Different ways of showing love cause a common communication gap among couples. Learning your love languages can help both you and your partner understand how you each prefer to receive love and better share with one another.
The five love languages include:
- Acts of service
- Physical touch
- Words of affirmation
- Receiving gifts
- Quality time
Knowing one another’s love language will better help you showcase your affection in small, meaningful ways that make an impact.
Show Gratitude
Sometimes long-term couples start to take each other for granted. When both partners are working hard and have many responsibilities, it’s easy to feel underappreciated. This feeling of being underappreciated often leads to resentment and negatively impacts a relationship over time.
Keep the magic alive by taking the time to say thank you and show gratitude, even for the simplest of tasks. Your partner might do the dishes every day— a necessary task in any household— but it’s still nice to hear that the effort is appreciated.
Get Help with Communication Breakdowns
Finally, if you find you’ve gotten to the point where it’s challenging to communicate and find that spark again, reach out for help. Getting couple’s therapy is still largely stigmatized, but it’s a viable option for those who struggle to get on the same page. Working with a counselor can help you learn skills to navigate difficult conversations and work through issues that impact the romantic quality of your relationship.
It takes work to keep the magic alive in a relationship, but it doesn’t have to be complicated. Try these simple strategies to rekindle the romance and keep your love life alive.
Read more: 5 Simple Valentine’s Day Celebration Ideas for A Newly Engaged Couple
