As humans, the relationships we form with other people are vital to our mental and emotional wellbeing. Like many things, relationships are a wonderful part of life that allow us to form a connection with someone and can be a source of deep fulfilment. Evidence suggests that the ability to build and maintain a stable relationship starts in infancy – a child’s relationship with their caregiver can determine how the child forms their own relationships later on in life. For example a child brought up in a loving and affectionate family will tend to carry that love and affection into its own relationships. However, a child who has never experienced or witnessed affection will think that’s the norm and won’t demonstrate affection in its own relationships. Whilst childhood relationships do affect later ones, it is still possible to form stable relationships, and below are just some of the reasons why romantic relationships are so important:
Less stress
A healthy relationship is a good stress-reliever. Your partner does not only serve as a shock absorber of your dramas, but they can cheer you up whenever you are so gloomy because of a frustrating day at work. An evening walk or jog at the park, a movie date, or a simple conversation over a cup of coffee can help replenish your energy. Being in a committed relationship is linked to less production of cortisol, a stress hormone. This suggests that married or paired people are less responsive to psychological stress, and that the social and emotional support that comes with having a partner can be a great buffer against stress.
Healthier Behaviours
Healthy relationships set the perfect tone for an overall healthy lifestyle. If your spouse encourages eating a healthy diet, exercising, not smoking, etc., you’re likely to follow in their footsteps. It’s a lot easier to take on healthy behaviours when you surround yourself with a partner who is doing the same.
Greater Sense of Purpose
It’s natural for humans to want to feel needed, and like they’re part of something bigger. Many people strive to feel like they’re doing something good for someone else, and improving the world in some way. Being in a loving relationship, no matter what kind, can give a person a sense of well-being and purpose. In fact, it’s possible that having a sense of purpose can actually add years to your life.
Better Healing
Whether it’s having someone there to remind you to take your medicine, or having a partner to help take your mind off the pain, research suggests married people who have undergone heart surgery are three times more likely to survive the first three months after surgery than single patients. Married patients also reported feeling more confident about their ability to handle post-surgery pain and were less worried about the surgery in general. A little emotional support can go a long way toward helping a person recover from a procedure or illness.
It Makes You Open-Minded
In a relationship, you have to respect your partner’s thoughts and accept that you are not always right. It makes you open to the reality that different people usually have different perspectives about the world, and your partner’s views could be different from yours. If you want a harmonious relationship, then you must know better than to insist on your opinions to your partner.
Someone Is There To Help You Become A Better Person
Overall, you can say that you are in a healthy relationship if it helps you to be a more mature individual. You and your partner must help each other become more stable physically, emotionally, financially, mentally, and spiritually. This happens as you both humbly acknowledge your flaws and strive to improve on those areas.
Reset with a couples retreat:
Despite the countless benefits of being in a relationship, they aren’t always sunshine and rainbows. Every relationship faces obstacles, and overcoming those is what makes the relationship stronger. If you feel that you and your partner aren’t in the best place or you have some things you’d like to work through then our Y42 Couple’s Retreat is definitely something to consider. Y42 merges age-old wisdom with the latest ‘wellbeing hacks’ to leave you feeling energized and inspired, with greater clarity to build healthy daily habits and relationships to achieve your life goals with a friendly and fun inspiring community! Click here to find out more.