Most people have no experience of staying indoors with a partner for weeks or months. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, nations have been on lockdown, forcing couples and other people to stay indoors together. As a result of these so many relationships have been ruined. In China and the US, there are reports of an increase in divorce filings due to the lockdown, and statistics are showing that more people will stop being couples after the pandemic. Avoid damaging your relationship should be your number one priority now. See how you can manage the time you spend together with your partner with these 10 practical suggestions.
How To Avoid Damaging Your Relationship During COVID-19
1. Have A Daily Routine
Staying together in the same house or apartment for twenty-four hours a day can be tedious. Idleness can lead to arguments and quarrels, which can affect or ruin your relationship. Two of you need to sit down and have a plan for daily routines and engagements.
Furthermore, such a routine will keep you occupied throughout the day and lead you to more productive ventures. When you start your day with planning, you end it with fulfillment and contentment, which can help reduce the stress of the lockdown.
2. Start An Online Business Or Join A Program
During this lockdown, you’re going to get tired of seeing each other and talking to each other. That’s why you need to find creative ways to spend the time, even if it’s to help sustain your relationship. Starting an online business will keep you busy for most of the day and help the two of you gain experience and earn extra income.
If you don’t want to work online, you can start a new program or course on one of those educational platforms. Besides, gaining a new skill will boost your self-confidence in your work, while the two of you will also find new topics or issues to discuss.
3. Interact With Friends And Family
Talking with just one other person for weeks may not be the best thing for your mental health and relationship. Most people are used to interacting with dozens of people daily, and a sudden change due to the stay-at-home orders might affect your emotional balance, thus ruining your relationship.
Speak with family and friends over the phone. A few days in a week is enough to create a balance in your interactions. You will also have the chance to gossip, talk about boys’ or girls’ things with your kind, and improve the relationship with family members.
4. Carve Out Individual Space
Many couples during the lockdown are going to quarrel over space than anything else. People naturally need their own space to exist, and it’s wise that you consider it now.
You can pick the kitchen while he takes the sitting room for your daily routine, remote work, or leisure. Two of you must respect each other’s space. When respect is established and maintained, the chances of quarrels and misunderstandings will reduce.
5. Take Care Of Yourself
Before anything else, you need to take care of yourself first. Neglecting yourself can be damaging to your relationship. Couples make the mistake of neglecting their needs and caring for their partner, only to get frustrated when things become challenging.
Furthermore, taking care of yourself means doing some of those things you enjoy doing each day. It keeps you sane and drives you towards self-realization. Once you can adequately get yourself in order, you will be able to help your partner, and everything else will become less complicated.
6. Plan Date Nights
Without access to fancy restaurants and movie theatres, you can still plan date nights. Planning date nights will help reduce the stress of the lockdown and make couples look forward to a memorable and enjoyable time. You can cook the meals together and decorate your dining with candles and flowers, to mimic a special and unique atmosphere.
Some of the most popular date night ideas for couples on isolation include games, like Mario Kart, Trivia, and video games. You can also play puzzle, paint a portrait together, or complete a DIY project in the garden. Couples can also watch romantic movies on Netflix for their date night.
7. Learn Something New Together
Learning something new keeps your mind and body engaged. It increases your adaptability and likeability, keeps you relevant, and boosts your self-esteem. All of these qualities will help strengthen the bond between the two of you and make life more comfortable during the lockdown. That way, you can avoid damaging your relationship.
Happiness and pride are two other reasons why learning something new can be beneficial for couples. The two of you will learn new things about yourself, which will improve your understanding of each other.
8. Redefine Sex
During isolation, stress is going to increase because of loss of job, uncertainties, and disruption to your daily life. Increased stress will reduce your desire for sex, and your partner will notice it.
As you plan to isolate together, the two of you must redefine sex. You need to know how often you’re going to have it. Don’t fall into the temptation of eliminating sex because it will hurt your intimacy. Have a conversation about sex and see how the two of you can work things out.
9. Schedule As Many Things As Possible
When you’re at home for days and weeks, you tend to do everything anytime you want. If you’re living with a partner, events will clash and can lead to quarrels and fights. This in turn may be very damaging for your relationship. That’s why you need to adopt the method of scheduling.
Time for food, watching TV, remote work, playing games, cooking, and other things must be on schedule. If possible, the two of you should print out your program to know when you’ll be free to do something together.
10. Exercise
Another way to avoid damaging your relationship is by doing exercises regularly. Whatever you do, make sure you include exercise in your daily routine during this COVID-19 period. Exercise will help you keep your relationship intact by triggering the physical and emotional strength needed to do so many things.
Furthermore, exercise will help reduce stress, improve your libido, and make your brain work better. With regular exercise, you will be able to reduce anxiety and depression and manage the hormones that cause anger. Spend some time doing some enjoyable physical activity.
Two of you should plan to do exercise together. There are many exercises for couples’ ideas online. Exercise for couples will increase emotional bonding, bring happiness, improve workout efficiency, and make your partner fall in love with you more.
Bottom Line
No marriage is perfect. All couples will encounter problems of some kind. The lockdown at the moment only makes things a bit worse. Following the tips above will help you to avoid damaging your relationship. It is imperative that you and your partner learn to resolve the problems that may come as a result of the coronavirus lockdown.
