It’s easy to fall into the trap of some popular yet misleading modern marriage myths. Unfortunately, these myths often distort the reality of what a marriage really is and what it can be.
By believing so many marriage myths, you can actually end up causing more damage to your relationship. You may never truly feel satisfied, even if everything is perfectly fine within that relationship.
Being able to break through some of these marriage myths allows couples to focus on what really matters in their relationship. When you’re able to do that, you can actually work on building a stronger marriage.
Myth #1: You Don’t Have to Tell Your Spouse Everything
Some couples tend to still want their privacy. While there’s a fine line to this myth, a good rule of thumb is to share as much as possible with your spouse.
Don’t assume that you’ll still have the same level of privacy in a relationship as you had when you were single.
As you may have guessed, assuming often leads to a lack of communication. And miscommunication is a ticking time bomb when it comes to ruining relationships.
If you do still want some privacy, talk to your partner about it. It’s better to work on ground rules together than keep things hidden from each other.
Myth #2: Friends Give You the Best Relationship Advice
Everyone has their own opinion on marriage and how relationships work. You might think your best friend has a successful marriage, so they’d be the best person to talk to about your own relationship.
However, this isn’t necessarily true. Another friend with a successful marriage might give you completely different advice.
You can take the opinions of friends and family to heart or with a grain of salt. It’s your choice.
If you’re really struggling with something in your marriage, it helps to have a mentor or counselor guide you through it.
The people closest to you might have your best interest in mind. But, that doesn’t mean their advice will always be what’s best for your relationship.
Myth #3: Happy Couples Never Argue
Between pop culture and social media, it’s easy to buy into the idea of an idyllic romantic life. For many people, that gives us the assumption that happy couples don’t go through arguments.
Every single couple argues at some point in time. It could be something as small as washing the dishes, or a much bigger life event.
Disagreements aren’t necessarily a bad thing in a relationship. In fact, they often make marriages stronger when they are executed correctly and productively.
Don’t assume that just because you argue with your spouse, it means you’re not “meant to be.”
Instead, focus on how you argue and disagree about things. Again, communication is key. How you handle arguments makes all the difference. Focus on coming out of the argument stronger.
Myth #4: You’re Too Different to Make It Work
It has become all too easy for people to find any excuse for an exit strategy in marriages today. You may begin thinking you’d be better off with someone else. Or, you may think you and your spouse are just too different to ever make things work.
The thing to keep in mind is that no marriage is perfect. In fact, a “perfect marriage” is the biggest myth of all.
Marriage takes a lot of work from both partners. Instead of always looking for a way out, commit yourself to work hard on your relationship, and expect your spouse to do the same. If you’ve reached a point where you can’t do it on your own, it’s okay to seek out help.
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Going through counseling or therapy with your spouse suggests that you both want the relationship to work.
Please reach out today if you’re ready to begin working towards your relationship goals.
Together, we can come up with practical solutions to strengthen your relationship and ignore some of the modern marriage myths that may be plaguing it.