Navigating the standards of expectations in a relationship is quite similar to balancing dreams with reality. Read below to learn how to set realistic love standards in relationships without sabotaging your love.
This rigid contradiction between our dreams and reality leads to countless challenges in our relationships. In today’s world, everyone is prone to compare their lives with each other, and facing disappointment when a partner fails to meet our often-unspoken expectations set due to these comparisons is not uncommon. These minor disagreements in a relationship can turn into deep-seated issues in no time.
Our team at Wedding Affair’s goal is to guide you through these challenges and provide you with practical solutions for managing your relationship expectations effectively.
Understanding Relationship Expectations
Relationship expectations are the beliefs and desires we hold while getting into a romantic relationship. These expectations include emotional support, love, understanding, communication style, and even day-to-day interactions. Acting as an internal blueprint, these shape the way we engage with our partners and manipulate our beliefs regarding a fulfilling relationship.
Realistic Love Standards Vs Unrealistic Love Expectations in Relationships
It’s crucial to differentiate between standards and expectations. The non-negotiable principles that govern our choices in partners are our standards, that include respect, loyalty, and a sense of humor. The specific behaviors or outcomes we hope or wish to see in our relationships are our expectations, like expecting our partner always to know what we’re feeling without us having to communicate it.
Reasons Behind Unrealistic Love Standards in Relationships
Media:
A variety of influences are responsible for not setting realistic love standards in relationships for us. The ideal image of love and partnership shown in the media is quite unattainable, setting a bar high for real-life relationships. People perceive relationships and love through the lens of social media and romantic movies. Portraying a perfect relationship with no issues or problems on social media makes people believe in unrealistic expectations of love.
Personal Experiences:
The unrealistic expectations in love and relationships can also be the consequence of unhealthy past relations and problematic family dynamics. Some might expect open communication only from their partner’s side if they grew up in a family where emotional transparency was undervalued and neglected. This can result in built-up frustration in one partner putting all the effort into the relationship trying to heal the partner with a problematic past.
Read Also: When to Apologise in a Relationship and When Not
Consequences of Unrealistic Expectations in Relationships
The ultimate recipe for disappointment and conflict can be unrealistic expectations in relationships. Setting the bar too high or expecting things that are not feasible can lead to a constant state of distress and dissatisfaction in your love life.
Setting Realistic Love Standards in Relationships
Understand Your Values and Beliefs:
Start by understanding your core values and beliefs according to their importance in your life. Align your expectations with these values in the relationship.
Differentiate Between Need and Want:
It is important to distinguish between what you need(necessity), such as respect and understanding from your partner, and what you want(desire), like shared hobbies with your partner in your relationship. Needs are essential for a healthy relationship, while wants can be negotiable.
Set Achievable Goals:
Aim for attainable objectives in your relationship. For instance, instead of expecting constant attention and time, look for consistent communication and quality time together.
Balancing Expectations with Realistic Love Standards
Accept Imperfections:
Embrace the flaws of each other and accept the small mistakes as part of your beautiful relationship journey.
Adjust Expectations:
The relationship dynamic between two individuals can change over time. So always be ready to modify your expectations according to those changing relationship dynamics.
Support Each Other’s Dreams:
While staying realistic, encourage each other’s aspirations. Find ways to integrate individual goals of each other to grow together in your relationship.
Read Also: How to Manage Wedding Planning Friction Between Couples
Hope we helped you in navigating your way through realistic and unrealistic expectations through this blog and in setting realistic love standards in your relationship. Thank you for reading!
