Know The Stages of Your Relationship

Our relationships are based on complicated social and interpersonal interactions. They have lots of external pressures and releases. The intimate relationships that we share shape the people that we become and mould our lives accordingly.

Our intimate relationships can be divided into distinct stages, each with it’s own characteristics, joys and sorrows. Each stage has its problems and each affects us in significantly different ways.

The first stage of any relationship is the honeymoon stage. You meet someone and form an amazing connection with them. The chemistry is great and you are completely in love with each other. This stage usually starts when you first meet and lasts for about six months to a year. This stage is marked with hopes of a better future and no problems or challenges seem intimidating.

As we go along the honeymoon stage we reach the stage of Discovery. The initial excitement of being in love subsides in this stage and you gradually begin to discover more about the other person. You uncover little things about people that you never realized before. This is the stage of receiving rude shocks. This is the time when you begin to discover the imperfections of your partner. This initial phase of this stage usually begins somewhere in the midst of the honeymoon stage and can last for several years. It largely depends on how the couple evolves emotionally and how much the two people are willing to disclose on their own.

Discovery is generally the stage where the couple takes the important decision of making a commitment. If the couple emerges unscathed from the discovery stage, they enter the Commitment stage where the relationship settles, usually comfortably, into bliss. This stage marks the beginning of more complex dynamics and also ushers in a whole new level of responsibilities, perhaps having the most profound affects on our lives. There is the joy of finally having won your partner over but this is also the time when couples face the most major stumbling blocks in their relationship. This stage demands extensive communication, attention, patience and faithfulness.

This brings us to the stage of the Power Struggle. This is the make or break stage of the relationship where individual roles get more defined. The stage presents situations that are truly testing. This stage starts almost with the commencement of the commitment and usually lacks any joy. The couple that makes through this stage emerges closer to each other and much stronger.

If the couple comes unscathed out of the power struggle, they enter into the growth phase where they enjoy the peace that they share with each other and begin to define each other better. The stage of the second honeymoon usually coincides with this stage.

While all stages of a relationship have their ups and downs, the couples that sail through are the real winners. They might not get the best out of each stage of their relationship, but they love and learn the most and are the people who get the most out of their lives.