Listening to music with the people around you can help boost your feelings of connection to them. This is because music has positive effects on some regions of the brain. Specifically, those involved with:
- Trust
- Empathy
- Cooperation
- Oxytocin (feel-good love hormone) production
- Bonding
Just spending half an hour with your partner, listening to tunes you both enjoy, can help facilitate bonding and bring your closer together.
6. Thank Each Other to Strengthen Your Relationship
Taking a partner for granted isn’t just going to damage a relationship. It’s also going to make them feel unloved. Make sure you both express your appreciation to and gratitude for each other often to strengthen your relationship.
This doesn’t just have to be for big things, and thankfulness shouldn’t be reserved for big gestures. Express gratitude whenever the other does a chore, does something nice for you, or even showcases just how great a person they are in general! Everyone likes to feel appreciated, and showing your partner your thanks will make sure they know you love them.
7. Communicate
It’s not possible to overstate the importance of communication in any relationship, whether romantic or otherwise. It keeps the relationship healthy and gives you new knowledge to build your love on. Here are some ways you should be communicating in your relationship to strengthen it:
· Make It Regular
When you have to apart for most of the time, communicate regularly. Send each other “hellos” and ask how they’re doing, share something funny you saw online, or talk about a situation you were just in! Regular communication keeps you close, even when you’re apart.
· Ask, Don’t Assume
Making assumptions is a rigged game. You can’t read minds, and your partner can’t know what you want for certain without hearing it. Make a habit of asking to clarify things without making any assumptions. Your mind can play tricks on you and make you reach conclusions that aren’t there, especially in times of stress or difficulty.
· Share Your Emotions
When you feel down, talk to your partner about it. Venting your feelings to an available partner brings you closer together, gives them insight into how you think, and reminds you that they are always there for you. It also shows that you trust your partner and value their ear and, if you ask for it, their advice.
· Ask How You Can Help
It’s great if you’re able to take on the mental load of knowing what needs to be done and how you can help. But sometimes, you’ll see an overwhelmed partner and be unsure of what to do. Ask how you can assist and follow through on helping them in showing that you care about them.
· Give Compliments
If you think your partner looks nice, tell them. If you admire their responsibility, say so. Complimenting each other is a great way to remember that you both still find each other desirable, and it’s always great to make the other person feel loved with your words!
· Check In Often
Now and then, it can be useful to sit down together and evaluate your relationship. Talk about good experiences, negative experiences, and things you’d like to work on in your relationship moving forward.
8. Do Something Frightening Together
Novel and “scary” activities raise adrenaline and send you on a thrill ride. When you do this with a partner, your senses heighten, and you become invigorated, often leading to strengthened romantic and sexual attraction.
This is also why people often form crash-and-burn type relationships in volatile or dangerous circumstances. The difference is that you and your partner already have a loving, romantically linked foundation to your relationship, so these adrenaline-rushing feelings enhance your bond, not make it volatile in itself!
You don’t need to do fear factor-level stuff or expose yourself to things that genuinely terrify you to your core to get these benefits. Research shows that any novel shared experience results in this positive bonding, sending sparks flying! In the long run, you’ll also get some great bonding moments to bring you closer and give you fond memories. You can:
- Go on a roller coaster or other thrilling amusement park rides.
- Watch a scary series or movie.
- Go bungee jumping or ziplining.
- Play frightening horror-themed video games
- Tell scary stories in a spooky atmosphere.
- Visit a haunted house.
9. Volunteer For A Cause Together
Volunteer work is good for your mental health in general, facilitating better positive thinking – but more importantly, it promotes the production of oxytocin, the love hormone! Essentially, it allows you to feel more connected to the people around you.
The act of volunteering or doing charity work with a partner allows you both to see great sides of each other while naturally facilitating closer bonding. You’ll also feel more relaxed and less stressed out, allowing you to feel more open to close connective moments.
Relationships have their ups and downs, but what’s important is that you continue to work on growing stronger together and showing each other how much your affection rings true. Even if your relationship is perfectly happy now, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be ensuring that you’re showcasing your love and keeping your bond healthy!