Often when intimacy has broken down in a relationship over time couples can start to feel as though they are merely friends or roommates, no longer feeling that sense of warmth and affection within the relationship.
True intimacy within a relationship is when you are able to really open up to one another, connect with one another and feel bonded together. It is far more than the physical or sexual intimacy; it is a true sense of connection and the ability to feel vulnerable enough to open up to one another.
Why Relationships Require Intimacy
Intimacy requires you to feel vulnerable, and a caution towards this can often be the root of why intimacy fades or ceases to exist between a couple. However, the existence of affection in our lives is a basic human need and without intimacy, individuals can start to feel lonely and isolated from their partner.
Lack of intimacy in a relationship can be one of the leading reasons why relationships breakdown, but with guided professional relationship therapy, you and your partner can start to build a foundation and move forward in the future with restoring intimacy into your relationship again, or even for the very first time.
Acknowledging the Problem
One of the first steps towards building intimacy in a relationship is acknowledging that there is a problem. If both parties can agree that there is a sense of distance and lack of intimacy between the two of them, then this is one of the most important steps in moving forward and building affection in the future.
Relationship counselling services assist in helping both parties understand where the problems are and what may be the causes and concerns. From here, a relationship counsellor is able to develop the tools and steps required to help you both reconnect on an intimate level and rebuild your relationship.
Spend Time Together
One of the tools you will learn through relationship counselling services is to start spending time together again. This may seem simple if you are already in each other’s company on a regular basis, but it means more than that. It’s about spending quality time together and engaging in activities you both enjoy.
This doesn’t have to be extravagant activities; it can be the simple act of eating a meal together or watching your favourite movie. It’s the act of really connecting again through shared interests and bonding in those moments that you spend together.
Resolving Conflicts
A key way that relationship therapy can assist with restoring the intimacy in your relationship is by helping you with unresolved conflicts. Disagreements and arguments are a key reason why intimacy breaks down in a relationship and that’s why it is so important to help overcome these barriers in order to restore that closeness in your relationship.
With relationship counselling, you learn the tools for managing conflicts when they arise and how to resolve them and discuss them in a healthy and productive way.
Open Communication
Another reason intimacy lacks in a relationship is because communication has broken down over time. This can be an inability to open up to one another and this is a key component in maintaining intimacy within a relationship.
Feeling safe to be vulnerable with your partner where you can share your thoughts, feelings and desires is important in restoring intimacy in a relationship. Relationship counselling services can help to build that sense of openness and allow you to truly open up to your partner, and most importantly, feel safe to do so.
Relationship Counselling in Adelaide
If you’re seeking relationship counselling services in Adelaide to help restore the intimacy in your relationship, then contact our professional supportive counsellors at Adelaide Counselling Practice on (08) 8237 0509/strong>.
