We all need intimacy in our lives. You will find that most people have to surround themselves with supportive and cheerful friends and family members to ensure that whatever road they take, they can accomplish. However, you will find that some people tend to build walls, preventing them from experiencing the benefits that intimacy can provide. Traumatic experiences and past mistakes might have opened your eyes to the risks of relationships, even if you are currently in a commitment.
Keeping your guard up might destroy your relationship despite your desire to maintain it. Your partner’s efforts to make you feel loved will require reciprocation. It is one of the love languages that can maintain a relationship. If you are having troubles with intimacy, you will have to figure out how you can open yourself more to your significant other. However, the first step is to identify the obstacles you might be facing.
Competitive Behavior
If you are in a relationship, you will have to learn how to share. Being in a serious commitment with your significant other means you will be on equal footing. There is no side winning or getting the better out of whatever the relationship offers. However, some people might feel like they need to be on top of whatever situation they are in, which could be a sign of competitive behavior. Competition is human nature, but people often use it in ways that harm other people.
Your relationship might suffer from the consequences of being competitive with one another. It might even lead to restricting your loved one from seeing their family and friends or refusing to share essential assets. Limiting career choices and forcing your partner to stay inside the house are signs that you might be trying to dominate the relationship.
A competitive behavior could make the situation toxic, making it essential to learn how to control yourself. Relationships are all about equality and support, so you will have to seek counseling to improve your behavior.
Jealousy
It will be necessary to support your partner in his or her endeavors. Your significant other might be trying to achieve success in personal or career goals. Your encouragement and motivation will be critical for your partner, which might even be the most significant factor that pushes the person to grow. Support is a vital sign of intimacy that every relationship needs, but your ego and pride might cause jealousy.
Jealousy could incite abusive behavior and unwanted feelings that might hurt the relationship. You might end up trying to dictate what your partner should be, which is a situation nobody ever wants to encounter. Fortunately, the best solution is to focus on your goals, allowing you to point competitive behavior into something helpful for your life.
Lack of Physical Touch
When talking about intimacy, people usually discuss physical touch. It’s not just about sex. The morning kisses, the hand-holding, the warm embrace on the couch will matter in a relationship. However, you might not be a fan of those gestures. Getting intimate might also be a challenge because of health complications. Satisfaction will be necessary for a relationship, which is the point of intimacy.
You will have to make an effort to be intimate with your significant other, even if it means putting yourself in uncomfortable situations. If you are having difficulties in bed, you might want to seek treatment for erectile dysfunction. Physical touch is the epitome of intimacy, making it critical to work on taking down barriers.
However, not every physical contact is an intimate activity. Countless cases of domestic abuse and violence remain alarming issues among relationships. Try to ensure that your actions are an expression of love, which is how physical touch can improve your relationship.
Inattention and Unresponsiveness
Most relationships start with a honeymoon phase that makes it challenging for couples to stay away from each other. However, you and your partner might develop comfort over time. While it can be a beneficial situation, you might end up not paying attention to your partner. Inattention or unresponsiveness could make people feel isolated and lonely, which should not be part of the relationship.
Getting into a relationship with the person you love does not mean that you can stop with your efforts. Something as simple as listening to how their days went or making breakfast can be intimate enough to ensure your partner that you still feel committed to the relationship.
You might feel like you finally met your significant other, but you still have barriers to overcome for yourself before calling yourself ready for a serious commitment. If you do not want to lose your chance with your partner, you will have to prevent these obstacles of intimacy from becoming a problem.
