{"id":1185099,"date":"2026-01-22T08:01:00","date_gmt":"2026-01-22T13:01:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thoughtcatalog.com\/?p=1185099"},"modified":"2026-01-15T11:03:28","modified_gmt":"2026-01-15T16:03:28","slug":"8-small-habits-that-help-love-last","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thoughtcatalog.com\/holly-riordan\/2026\/01\/8-small-habits-that-help-love-last\/","title":{"rendered":"8 Small Habits That Help Love Last"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Trust is essential in a healthy relationship<\/a>. You should feel completely comfortable around your person. You should feel like you can talk to them about anything that\u2019s on your mind. Here are the relationship habits that will strengthen trust in your next life chapter:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Communicate your feelings early.<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Don\u2019t wait until a problem snowballs to come to them about it. Don\u2019t wait until you\u2019re ready to explode at them over a certain behavior to admit that it\u2019s been bothering you. Speak up about how you\u2019re feeling early, so they know when there\u2019s a problem and can fix it before it becomes a bigger issue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Only make promises you can keep.<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Breaking promises<\/a> is an easy way to lose trust, so make sure you\u2019re prepared to follow through on what you say. Make sure your actions will match your words so you don\u2019t end up disappointing your partner and making them question whether they can count on you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Communicate your feelings openly.<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Having a conversation shouldn\u2019t feel like pulling teeth. Don\u2019t make them guess what\u2019s bothering you for weeks or beg you to admit what you\u2019re thinking. Answer their questions honestly and keep an open dialogue. Talking doesn\u2019t have to be a big chore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Actively listen whenever they speak.<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It doesn\u2019t matter whether they\u2019re speaking about a serious topic or are ranting about their favorite TV show. Put down your phone and pay close attention to show them that you value what they have to say. They will stop trusting you with the little things if your eyes glaze over whenever they speak, so never make them feel like they\u2019re talking to a wall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Be clear about your boundaries, and respect their boundaries. <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Make sure your partner knows what is and is not okay in your eyes. Make sure they have a clear understanding of your hopes and expectations for the relationship. And make sure you are taking their boundaries<\/a> seriously too. Don\u2019t peer pressure them or guilt them into doing what you want anyway. Respect the lines that they have drawn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Avoid judging them when they open up to you.<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Don\u2019t relentlessly tease them about their biggest fears \u2013 or even their favorite music and movies \u2013 because it could cause them to hesitate before sharing more with you in the future. They should feel comfortable opening up to you about anything and everything without fear of judgement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stick up for them when they\u2019re in trouble.<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It should be the two of you against the world. They shouldn\u2019t feel like you\u2019re throwing them to the wolves whenever they\u2019re in trouble. You should be in their corner, on their side. They should trust that you have their back, no matter what.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Say I love you <\/em>and thank you <\/em>every single day.<\/strong> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Remember, not all of your conversations should focus on the negative. You should have open discussions about the positives too. Express how much you appreciate them and how much you care about them on a frequent basis so they never have to question the way you feel.  <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Here are the relationship habits that will strengthen trust in your next life chapter:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":105961862,"featured_media":1185100,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"thoughtcatalog_call_to_action":"","tc_post_redirect":"","thoughtcatalog_is_sponsored_content":"0","footnotes":""},"categories":[603229912],"tags":[],"anchortext":[],"posttemplate":[],"adcampaign":[],"coauthors":[432023958],"class_list":["post-1185099","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-relationships"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/thoughtcatalog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/coleman-glover-2Zh3rycxGCI-unsplash.jpg","author_meta":null,"photo_credit":null,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thoughtcatalog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1185099","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thoughtcatalog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thoughtcatalog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thoughtcatalog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/105961862"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thoughtcatalog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1185099"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thoughtcatalog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1185099\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1185101,"href":"https:\/\/thoughtcatalog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1185099\/revisions\/1185101"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thoughtcatalog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1185100"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thoughtcatalog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1185099"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thoughtcatalog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1185099"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thoughtcatalog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1185099"},{"taxonomy":"anchortext","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thoughtcatalog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/anchortext?post=1185099"},{"taxonomy":"posttemplate","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thoughtcatalog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posttemplate?post=1185099"},{"taxonomy":"adcampaign","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thoughtcatalog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/adcampaign?post=1185099"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thoughtcatalog.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=1185099"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}