Every relationship is unique and has a distinct dynamic that makes it special and interesting. Whether it is a romantic relationship, marriage, family relations, or friendship, each relationship has its own emotional needs and challenges. Relationships need hard work, effort, time, and genuine intention to make them work.
As easy as it may sound, making any relationship work takes real energy and time. A relationship can thrive only if both parties involved make equal efforts and work hard toward the same goal of making their relationship healthy and nurturing.
However, often people find themselves stuck in a situation when it comes to working through a relationship challenge. In case you are also dealing with such a situation you can consult a relationship counselor who can help you navigate through it. A relationship counselor is a professionally trained person who has expertise in helping clients resolve relationship problems or issues.
This article will walk you through 5 key steps on how to resolve relationship challenges so that you can find the happiness you truly deserve in your relationship.
Following are the 5 fundamental steps or approaches one must take when trying to resolve relationship challenges.
5 Principle Steps to Resolve Relationship Challenges
1. Feel Your Feelings
This is the first basic step in resolving a relationship challenge. It means to recognize exactly what you are feeling in the moment when you encounter a relationship issue, conflict, or distress. Is it anger, sadness, fear, or jealousy? Where do you feel this emotion? Is it in your head as a headache, or do you feel it in your gut or stomach or muscle stiffness?
It is advised to do this process with a relationship counselor, as it can be quite discomforting or even overwhelming to sit your true feelings.
Knowing how you feel is essential to resolve the underlying reason for this feeling. Once you have seen what or how you are feeling, it’s time to understand the reason behind this uncomfortable feeling.
What is causing this anger or sadness to bubble up? What action of your partner or the other person involved upset you? Was it them not giving you attention or was it them talking to some other girl or boy that bothered you?
Try to figure out which action or situation caused you to feel this uncomfortable feeling.
2. Make Time to Discuss
Once you have figured out what exactly you are feeling and what action caused you to feel this emotion. The next step is to deliberately make time to discuss the issue with your partner.
The two people involved in the relationship need to sit and talk about their feelings and emotions openly. One needs to be honest while discussing their feelings or the situation that is upsetting your relationship. In case you are not able to do this by yourself, you can book an appointment with a relationship counselor and discuss the matter with them.
A couple therapist is trained professionally to handle such difficult situations and help people navigate through difficult emotional situations or conflicts. They are well-qualified people who have expertise in resolving relationship conflicts and helping people during emotional distress.
3. Listen First And Respond After:
When you and your partner or the other friend or family member, whoever is involved in the relationship are ready to discuss the issue, you must allow one person to speak at a time.
During the discussion, each partner should pay attention to what the other has to say and give them emotional validation and support for opening up and being vulnerable. Both members should express their feelings and communicate what exactly they expect from each other.
In this process, attentive listening with proper eye contact and body language is necessary as this conveys the message that the partners are willing to understand each other’s perspectives. A relationship counselor can be very helpful during this process as they can help partners communicate and understand each other’s feelings.
4. Take Action
Once the above steps are followed the couple or pair should take realistic action to either rectify the situation, make amendments, or avoid the same or similar upsetting situation in the future. Making genuine efforts is essential to make any relationship work.
This could include making time every weekend for the partner, going to movies, or having dinner, or spending quality time with each other. Both partners should be willing to work on this together, they should be willing to make their relationship a happy and peaceful place for them.
When a couple is not able to understand what exactly they should do to rectify or amend their situation, they are advised to take the help of a professional relationship counselor. A relationship counselor can be very helpful in such a situation.
5. Celebrate Small and Big Victories
This final part of the process is last but not the least- Celebrating your wins. It means when your partner does something good for you or when you both resolve the conflict, you must celebrate this achievement.
This celebration could be anything as simple as having a coffee date, splitting a cupcake or anything big like throwing a party.
This small but crucial step shows how much the relationship matters to both the parties involved.
Validating each other for making positive changes in their actions to nurture the relationship is one of the most important steps for a healthy bond.
In case you are consulting a therapist or a relationship counselor for relationship advice you must discuss these small moments of appreciation with them to let them assess the growth of your relationship.
Conclusion
Relationships are like plants, they need to be nurtured with care regularly. Every relationship faces challenges. There are highs and lows in all kinds of relationships and therefore, it is necessary to make time and effort to sustain any relationship.
One of the key factors that play a crucial role in resolving relationship challenges is communication. When feelings are communicated effectively a conflict or a difficult situation can be resolved easily.
When relationships encounter a challenging or difficult situation, one can take the help of a relationship counselor to help navigate the situation. A relationship counselor is a professionally trained person who helps couples or partners to address the issue and then resolve it efficiently.
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