Enhance Your Relationships: 7 Creative Ideas to Improve Your Bond

Investing in your relationship is crucial if you want it to last. Over time couples can get too comfortable, leading both partners to feel stuck in a rut. However, spending time together and finding new ways to enhance the relationship can help you overcome difficult times. You already work on improving yourself, so consider taking that same energy and putting it into your relationship. Here are a few creative ideas to improve your bond:

1. Make Time

Both partners should make time for each other. Living with your partner may make you think you spend enough time together. However, sitting in front of the television after work can’t replace a conscious effort to bond. Instead, make time by planning activities to do together that you both enjoy, such as cooking together, going on dates, and playing games like racing simulators. Any time you spend together should be just for the two of you; no more cell phones or other distractions. If you have children, you must find ways to spend time together even though it's more challenging, so consider finding a babysitter well in advance to allow you to plan a night together.

2. Know How to Solve Conflicts

It's normal for couples to have disagreements, but these arguments don't have to blow up into something that affects your relationship. Instead of trying to be right, both partners should attempt to understand where the other is coming from and develop a deeper understanding of their feelings. There are many important milestones to share together, like getting married, having kids, or buying a house together, so it is important to set your conflict management skills as a couple up for success early. Additionally, always talk through disagreements and conflicts so they don’t go unresolved and fester into resentment.

3. Plan Sex

Planned sex may not sound like the most romantic way to spend time together. However, it's necessary for some couples, especially parents. Of course, sex isn't the most important part of a relationship, but it is crucial to feel more connected with your partner. A healthy sex life can strengthen your bond and make your relationship feel more special. Unfortunately, things can often get in the way of sex. Everything from being busy and tired or erectile dysfunction or low libido can cause intimacy issues.

This is why it's essential to plan and discuss issues with intimacy. If you're busy, you can find some time when you don’t feel exhausted and spend quality time together in the bedroom. Meanwhile, if either of you suffers from intimacy issues, planning will give you enough time to find the solution together.

4. Laugh Together

The best way to feel bonded to your partner is to laugh with them. Being happy and experiencing joy is crucial to any relationship; the easiest way to do that is to find activities you enjoy. It could be anything from playing video games to going out and trying something new. Humor can help you get past the good, the bad, and the ugly in any relationship, allowing you to see past conflicts and maintain your bond.

5. Be More Open

Everyone has feelings and needs; if you don't share those with your partner, they can’t know your expectations for the relationship. Instead of feeling resentful your partner isn't giving you what you need, you should open up and tell them. Your partner isn't a mind reader. If you want them to help out around the house more, ask. If you want them to spend more time with you, ask. If you're feeling upset about something they did, tell them.

Opening up and sharing something, regardless of how scary it is, can help you build a tighter bond and allow you to open the lines of communication to improve your relationship.

Additionally, you should be more open about yourself. Even if you've been with your partner for years, there are many things to learn about each other. If your partner truly loves you, they'll find just about anything about you intriguing, even if it's something you're embarrassed about. Additionally, sharing these feelings can help you feel closer to one another as long as it's not one-sided.

6. Be Yourself

Being yourself is much easier as the relationship progresses. When you start living together, your partner will learn everything there is to know about you, so you don't want them hit with any surprises. Being authentic with your partner shows them who you are when you're comfortable and feel safe in the relationship.

Being who you are in a relationship is crucial; trying to change who you are to match your partner's expectations means you're not being true to yourself. If you're not authentic, your partner can’t get to know you deep down, and you may not even recognize yourself in the mirror. To form a bond with someone, you have to be yourself. Once they accept you as you are, you can build a closer bond with them.

7. Listen

One thing many people struggle with is listening to others. Whether your partner tells you about their day or asks you to do chores, you should listen when they talk. Remember, most people don't complain to their partners for advice; they want someone to listen and understand their issues. So instead of offering advice, be a shoulder to cry on and help them through difficult times.

Of course, you should also listen to things that may seem less important, such as them telling you about their day. Even if it's not the most interesting story, they're telling you because they want to share it with their favorite person. They'll think you won't care about them if you're not listening.

Enhancing Your Relationship

The best way to enhance your relationship is to be honest with yourself and your partner. If you feel like you don't spend enough time together, say something. Spending time with your partner, regardless of what you're doing, is crucial because it allows you to talk. Even if you live together, making time for one another can help you form tighter bonds, allowing you to open up and become true partners instead of just a couple.

Every couple is different, so consider doing things you both enjoy, whether that’s staying in and playing board games or going out and experiencing something new.

Megan Isola

Megan Isola holds a Bachelor of Science in Hospitality and a minor in Business Marketing from Cal State University Chico. She enjoys going to concerts, trying new restaurants, and hanging out with friends.