Healthy Relationships
Most people want healthy, supportive relationships. Whether it is a familial, friendly, dating, or intimate partner relationship, we all benefit from the acceptance and love shared in caring relationships. Study after study has proven that positive relationships help prevent and heal from illnesses and improve life expectancies. We don’t all grow up knowing how to have healthy relationships, but most of us can learn!
Healthy intimate partner relationships take work, respect, love, and conscious, deliberate care by both partners.
Some characteristics of healthy intimate relationships include but are not limited to:
Mutual Respect and Equality
- Respect for each other’s contributions, strengths, uniqueness and value; both as individuals and for what each party brings to the relationship
- Partners have equal decision making power
- Partners have mutual commitment to the relationship and loyalty towards each other
- Each partner has flexible gender expectations and legitimate respect for each partner’s gender
- Partners share tasks and parenting responsibilities
- Each partner is supportive of each other’s outside interests, relationships, goals, and activities
- Respect and value given to each partner’s belief systems and/or faith and time is made for each partner to participate in their faith
Communication
- Negotiation, compromise and cooperation are part of daily problem solving together
- Expectations and personal needs are clearly stated by both partners
- Personal beliefs and opinions of each partner are respected even when not shared by the other partner
- Active listening, respectful language, gestures, and actions are used to communicate even in disagreement
- Neither partner needs to be right all the time
- Each partner expresses appreciation for the other partner
Trust
- Each partner assumes the other partner’s best intentions
- Both partners are honest and genuine with each other
- Partners are able to rely on each other
- Both partners watch out for each other
- Partners are emotionally affirming and understanding
- Each partner takes responsibility for their own actions, behaviors and emotions and is able to admit mistakes
Safety
- Both partners are supportive of each other and encouraging
- Each partner feels safe to say “No” to sex and is never made to feel guilty
- Partners do not retaliate or punish each other
- Privacy for feelings, physical needs and personal space is respected by both partners
- Shared secrets, insecurities and past hurts are kept confidential and never used against each other
- Partners acknowledge past abusive behavior and change the behavior