A sustained and healthy degree of intimacy is an essential requirement for the success of any romantic relationship, be it in a marriage or a typical romantic involvement between two people.
Intimacy comes in many forms: physical, emotional, spiritual, and intellectual; thus, it’s not enough that those in a relationship are physically or emotionally intimate.
They have to be intimate in every aspect for the relationship to flourish and last long. Love, without intimacy in all forms possible, won’t survive even for a year as it would hardly account for anything substantial or sustainable.
If you’re in a relationship and you want it to not just survive but thrive as well, be sure to follow these six simple ways of keeping intimacy alive:
1. Take care of your physical self.
A great many couples fall out of love when they lose physical intimacy due to one partner forgetting to tackle great care of herself or himself. While this reason may seem like a laughable and shallow one, you have to realize that for some people, it’s a sign of the partner not caring enough for the other partner’s physical needs. So, one of the first ways of sustaining intimacy is to keep your physical appearance in great condition.
Whether this requires you to get a Botox treatment to make your face look young and fresh or spending time at the gym to keep your body in great shape, the idea is to let your partner see that you care about how he or she perceives your physical attractiveness.
2. Keep your confidence level high.
If your partner originally fell in love with you because of your oozing self-confidence, there is absolutely no reason for you to let your guard down and turn into a person who’s unsure about many things.
Another way to maintain intimacy in your relationship is to keep your confidence level high but not to the point of being arrogant. Just show your partner how confident you are about your capabilities or self-worth, so he or she would remain enamored with you.
3. Be spontaneous.
Who doesn’t love occasional romantic surprises? Whether we’re talking about showing up at your partner’s workplace with a bouquet and chocolates on Valentine’s Day or getting your partner to dress up suddenly for an unannounced date night, the idea is to have your partner pleasantly caught off-guard with a little surprise.
The sudden rush of emotions is what will keep your partner wondering what little trick you have up your sleeves, thus maintaining a healthy degree of anticipation for each day that you spend together.
4. Do things together.
Doing things together doesn’t have to be overly special, romantic, or expensive. Whether you’re just lying together on your bed and watching the latest episode on your favorite series or completing a small backyard garden, the idea is to think about anything that you both love and then doing it together.
5. Cook hearty meals.
No partner would say no to a delicious meal that was obviously cooked with love. Forget about the sexist notion that the best way to man’s heart is through his stomach — the right mindset must be that one of the best ways to winning over your partner’s heart is through a hearty meal that you prepared with utmost tenderness and love. If you know how to cook and you’re good at it, then it’s certainly an avenue that you have to explore regularly to keep your partner head over heels in love with you.
6. Engage in meaningful conversations.
There is no shortage of anecdotes about long-time romantic partners waking up one day only to find out that they no longer love each other just because they no longer communicate regularly. This should never be the case with your relationship (or any relationship for that matter).
Instead, you have to constantly find topics that you both share a common interest in or even one that the other partner doesn’t know much about but you’re confident that he or she would love to discuss with you. You should try to update your knowledge, talk about your plans, and ask each other how the day went. These small talks matter a lot in keeping one another in the loop and maintaining the vital emotional and intellectual intimacy for each other.
Remember that keeping the fire alive in any relationship is never a one-way affair. Instead, it requires both partners to do their respective shares and try to find their own ways of letting the other partner feel their love. With these six ways, sustaining intimacy in your relationship should be easier and more meaningful for both of you.
