Importance of respect in a relationship

08.11.2018

Many believe that respect is not the most important quality in a family or relationship. But a considerable number of marriages break up precisely because one partner ceases to respect the other. Weaknesses, emotionality, and infantilism of one partner cause the same in the other partner. So today we will cover the fundamental things about respect in relationships, how to establish trust in relationships and how to respect your partner.

What is respect in relationships?

One of the serious problems in marriage is the lack of respect for each other. In general, all people create families for love, but almost no one thinks about respect. But it is respectful attitude towards each other that helps to preserve love for many years.

So, what is respect in relationships, and how does it relate to love? Love is a feeling of deep attachment to another person, a feeling of strong sympathy. Love does not care about the distance. This is the belief that people are forever together ...

To respect your partner is to recognize his/her achievements, to respect personal space and personal goals. Respect involves such qualities as justice, equality of rights, attention to the interests of your partner, his/her convictions, as well as freedom and trust.

Each culture has developed its own ideas of how to respect your partner:

• In the Eastern family, a woman respects a man only because he is a man. She is raised in such a way - to respect the males and elderly. A woman must unquestionably obey her husband and serve him.
• In India, a woman expresses her respect when she washes her man's feet.
• In Egypt, to appear in front of her husband with an inappropriate look - in an old robe and uncombed - is a sign of disrespect. The most terrible offense in the Egyptian family, after which the spouse has the right to drive his wife out of the house forever, is to tell him that he does not provide for the family. After all, thereby his wife questions his manliness.
• In a modern European family, the respect of spouses for each other is that they are recognized as equal.

Reasons why respect is important in relationships

Respect in the family is the result of a relationship. It is difficult to establish and even harder to maintain. When people meet, it may seem that they already respect each other. But actually, they have a lust for each other, and it is not respect. In addition, it does not serve as a basis for real respect in the family, because it always ends rather quickly after the start of a relationship, and further work is needed on its development.

We are designed so that when two people meet, they have a strong attachment to each other, which causes them to feel joy. This is done to make people closer together. Attachment and attraction feel like there is already some kind of respect, but in reality, it is just the result of the work of sex hormones. And achieving that sacred thing as respect in a relationship should be the main priority of any couple.

What is mutual respect in a relationship?

1. It is to love and care

The most important respect sign in a healthy relationship is sincere mutual love. Partners take care of each other, both in words and in deeds, constantly demonstrating that they value and love each other.

2. Honesty

In a healthy relationship, when there is mutual respect, partners do not lie to each other and do not hide the truth. Such relationships are transparent, there is no place for deception.

3. Readiness to accept a partner for who he/she is

You have probably heard that you should not start a relationship hoping to change your partner over time. Whether it is a question of very serious problems like drug addiction or trifles like constantly unwashed dishes - if you expect that he or she starts to behave differently, then most likely you will be disappointed. Yes, people can change, but they should want to do so. You cannot force your partner to change, no matter how much you love him.

4. Mutual aid

Those who have trust in relationships have common goals. They do not try to meddle in each other’s business, do not try to “win” each other. Instead, mutual respect and mutual support reign in the relationship.

Ways you can show respect in relationships

In order to preserve love and prevent misunderstandings in family relationships, it is important to jointly create the right atmosphere in the house and develop relationship respect. People who stay in the same territory have to put up with the bad habits of other roommates. Self-esteem is an integral part of a person’s personality, so pay special attention to self-esteem. Surrounding people will not reckon with your opinion if you are not confident in your own abilities. Only by cultivating self-sufficiency inside, one can count on the respect of the family. To save a relationship, you need to learn to put up with the bad habits of other family members.

Do not forget that before marriage you were brought up and lived in different conditions, therefore cohabitation in the same territory will be accompanied at first by a number of misunderstandings. In this situation, it is important to come to your senses in time and find compromise solutions that suit all household members.

Self-respect and relationships

This topic, in my opinion, has grounds only if we are talking about perceiving your goals and being yourself and how your partner reacts to you doing these things.

If your partner somehow obstructs you from such, then he/she doesn’t respect you, yet if you forbid yourself from self-development, then you do not respect yourself.

It is a fine line to get, it is somewhat narrow and thin. You should be yourself and strive for things, yet know when to stop and when to push your way forward.

Signs your partner doesn`t respect you

1. He/she does not answer your calls and text messages

Yes, he/she is not obliged to respond to your messages instantly, but within a day you can find time to write a message. Your partner lacks relationship respect.

2. Selfish behavior

He/she is not interested in your opinion. Even when you are choosing a movie, you will always pick his/her favorite stuff. Such a person simply will not stop.

3. He/she is unreliable

Just notice how he/she behaves when you really feel bad. Is he/she truly interested in your problems or is just asking a mandatory “what’s happened” question?

4. Appreciates only his/her own appearance

He/she is always ready to show off but is never ready to talk about you, and, perhaps, deep down inside, doesn’t remember your deeds and achievements as well.

Signs that your relationship is bad for your self-esteem

1. You are not on the same page. If you and your partner are not on the same page, then you will soon run into problems. For example, your partner dreams of traveling around the world, and you desperately want to get married and have a family life. If it seems to you that you have completely different interests and a conflict is brewing, the time has come for a serious conversation. There is nothing terrible about the fact that you have different plans and there is no place for you in the life of your partner.

2. One-sided relationship. Not all relationships begin as one-sided, but most of them soon become so. Successful relationships require from both partners the ability to both take and give. Problems begin if one of them gives or takes more. Since relationships require the same effort from both partners, each of them must be able to sacrifice something if he/she wants these relationships to be successful. If one of them cares about the relationship, and the second does not apply even half of such efforts, then their relationship is on the verge of collapse.

3. Lack of trust. Trust is the most important component in a relationship. If you cannot fully trust your partner, you constantly check the list of his/her calls and the history of messages, suspect him/her of cheating, then it’s time to ask yourself what you are doing next to such a person. Even if you decide to maintain a relationship with him/her and try to ignore your insecurity, a lack of trust will still lead to nothing.

How to restore respect in a relationship

Learn to quarrel. Psychologists say: do not be afraid to quarrel. This is a strong respect sign. Scandals and quarrels are different concepts. So, a quarrel is often just a dialogue between two adult people, organized in order to come to a common decision. For this, it is not necessary to swear and scream. Learn to defend your rights and responsibilities in an intelligent way. During the clarification of relationships, it is necessary, first of all, to pay attention not to the tone and intonation, but to the information itself. Learn not to pick on the words of your partner.

Love and respect yourself. As they say, if you want someone to love you, first start to love yourself. The same goes for respect. In other words, respect arises on the basis of self-sufficiency, self-esteem, and inner harmony. Therefore, it is important for each spouse to be independent and not put pressure on each other by emotional actions.

Care. When was the last time you complimented your partner? Compliments are an important part of everyday life. After each of them, the spouse will immediately be inspired for new achievements for the sake of a loved one. It is also important to show your partner affection, openness and love.

True mutual respect in a relationship comes naturally. If two people love each other very much, then a question of how to achieve such a thing won’t be a problem. But often, a relationship is worth fighting for even if it’s down in the dirt. Respect your partner and yourself – this is the simplest recipe to have a healthy relationship.