The Coronavirus pandemic presents a very difficult time for everyone. We are forced to be cooped up at home, finances are strained in many marriages as people are losing their jobs and/or having their hours cut, and married couples and their children are required to be around one another 24/7. Too much time in the house and too much togetherness can make anyone stir crazy.
So how do you maintain your marriage and not drive each other crazy during a quarantine? Here are some tips!
Create Your Own Separate Space
If you and/or your spouse are now working from home, it is critical and very important to create and have your own separate workspace, in a room of your home where you are not disturbed or interrupted.
Otherwise, you are in each other’s space and the constant interruptions will irritate and annoy one another. So, find a space that you can call your own, and which your spouse can call their own for work and for personal time alone. It is very important to carve out time for oneself within a relationship, especially now, in order for the relationship to be healthy.
Maintain Open and Honest Communication
Communication is the cornerstone of a strong and healthy relationship. However, often times communication breaks down during times of great stress, which can drastically harm the relationship as a result.
Be open and honest with one another about how you’re feeling, and about your fears and concerns. Bottling up your feelings is not a healthy avenue to take. Talk openly with one another about what is happening in your lives. Talk openly about what you need from your spouse. Don’t hold everything inside. That’s a recipe for disaster and can lead to many other problems within the relationship.
If you need time alone, say so. If you need to take a walk or exercise by yourself, then do it. It is natural and healthy to want some time apart, so don’t be afraid to ask for it. Healthy relationships involve being open about your needs and desires, so don’t suppress them, especially now.
And if your spouse wants time alone or space from you, try not to take it personally. 24/7 togetherness can cause strain on the relationship, and everyone needs time alone to refuel and recharge.
Avoid Petty Arguments and Forgive Easily
If you or your spouse are feeling particularly tense, anxious, worried or fearful, be careful of how you react and respond to your spouse. If you are feeling snappy and irritable, try not to take your bad mood out on one another.
Avoid petty arguments, and allow the little things, the smaller bothersome things, slide. Be generous with your forgiveness of each other for any wrongdoings or mistakes.
Now is the time to truly show your love to your spouse, so forgive easily and don’t let the small infractions and mistakes bother you too much. Try to maintain the larger perspective that ‘this too shall pass’.
Maintain Your Humor
Humor after all is the universal medicine and therapy for tension and stress. Try to maintain a sense of humor through the great challenges you face. Try to find something humorous that will give you a chuckle every day, whether it’s funny memes you can find and share online, funny jokes, comedy movies, or anything that is more lighthearted.
The more laughter and humor you can share with your spouse will alleviate the tension and stress you both feel.
Get Creative in the Kitchen
Now is the time to enjoy home cooked meals and cooking, so get creative! Try a new recipe and find meals you enjoy sharing and cooking together. Make the most of the situation and allow your culinary skills and creativity to shine. Try having breakfast in bed on a day when you’re both not working! Make food and cooking a fun experience for yourselves.
Look Ahead to More Favorable Times and Maintain Optimism
Remember that difficult times are almost always temporary. Look ahead and have something to look forward to, whatever that may be – a return to normal life, the return to your favorite activities and forms of entertainment, a trip you may want to take in the future, friends you wish to see, or anything else that you look forward to.
The more positive and optimistic you can be right now, the better off your marriage will be. So, don’t let the current situation bring you so far down the rabbit hole that you cannot see a brighter future. Remain optimistic about the future – it will help maintain the health of your marriage, trust me.
Above all Else, Keep the Magic Alive
Keep the magic between you alive. You love one another and that’s the most important thing to remember right now. So, maintain a sense of romance and loving feelings.
Be affectionate, cuddle and show your love to each other. Don’t lose sight of or let affection slide. Be generous with your love. Difficult, trying times often bring people together and bonds them tighter, and this is one of those times. So, love your spouse with all your heart and soul, faults included, and show them how much you truly care.
So, there are some tips on how to maintain your marriage through the pandemic and through a quarantine. Be strong, be resilient and keep striving and hoping for better days ahead, for you and your loved ones. Here’s to your happiness!