Showing affection isn’t always easy. For some of us, affection and overt displays of love don’t come naturally, perhaps due to our personalities or the environment we grew up in.
However, displays of affection are crucial in the vast majority of relationships. If you’ve been finding it tricky, don’t worry.
It’s really the little things that go a long way when it comes to the question of how to show affection, and they’re very easy to do.
To help you get creative and let your special someone know you think the world of them, here are a few simple ways to show more love and affection in your relationship.
1. Give them your full attention
Give your partner your undivided attention when he or she is talking to you, just like you did when you were first dating. Don’t multi-task when communicating.
2. Anticipate their needs
Try to predict what your partner wants before they even know they need or want something. This stems from understanding the underlying values of your partner.
3. Know their love language
Do they like acts of kindness, physical touch, gifts, or acts of service? Learn this about your partner and love them this way to build a strong relationship, says Dr. Lori Whatley, a licensed marriage and family therapist.
4. Let them know you’re listening
When your partner is speaking, listen for details and learn to validate your partner by repeating back to them what they say. Communication is a key factor to the satisfaction of a relationship, says Whatley.
5. Touch them
Tell them daily you love them by touching them lovingly; it helps build affection. Plus, people feel more secure in a relationship when there is frequent romantic touch.
6 Always make time
Make time for your partner, especially when you’re busy. “Return their texts or phone calls and let them know they’re a priority, ” say s Whately. “Being present and available to your partner is necessary for the relationship to flourish.”
7. Make eye contact
When we look at our partner and make eye contact when they’re speaking to us it let’s them know we’re present with them. “We feel loved, seen, and validated when someone is present in the current moment with us,” says Dr. Dori Gatter, a psychotherapist and relationship expert.
8. Give them a hug
“When you hug your partner make sure to be chest to chest and stomach to stomach as our hearts and stomachs are where a large part of our nervous system lives,” explains Gatter. “Hugging this way and pressing our heart and stomachs helps to calm down our nervous systems.”
