Learning how to save a relationship happy and healthy is a big topic, and the discussion of it will take up quite a high proportion of content and articles.
At this point, however, I will simply list some of the skills that are useful if couples want to learn how to save a relationship – especially in sustaining a long-term relationship.
You don’t necessarily need all of these to succeed in maintaining the relationship, but each of them in my view has some value, and contributes to the ultimate success in learning how to keep the relationship and staying together ’till death us do part’.
It is important, however, to stress that there can be good relationships in which none of these things are present, and whatever your own situation, it is worth trying to improve things, by putting the ideas of how to save a relationship into practice.
Factors which can help to sustain a long-term relationship:
- Being realistic from the beginning and working on problems
- Developing mutual interests
- Toleration
- Shared ideals
- Ability to negotiate and compromise
- Sexual attraction
- Both partners comfortable with the level or intimacy that they have.
On the other hand, there are also some factors which are more likely than others to break up relationships, which you also need to be aware of when trying to understand how to save a relationship – again I will simply list these at this point.
What factors might lead to separation?
- Affairs, especially if they lead to a new long-term relationship
- The resentment caused by an affair
- Drinking, drug taking, gambling, etc.
- Difficult or irresponsible behavior
- Negative influence of friends or family members
- Pressures from work, travel, etc.
- Getting hooked on the Internet (including porn sites)
- Conflict
- ‘Growing apart’
- Retirement and the ‘empty nest’ (after children have left)
Any of the above factors may lead to a serious crisis in the relationship, but it is also possible to recover from almost any of them if the couple really want to learn how to save the relationship enough, and in some cases, for example, working through the difficulties can strengthen a relationship and make it more stable and more satisfying.