How to keep your relationship healthy
Human relationships play a very important role in your life. These relationships can range from close and intimate to distant and difficult. Regardless of the type of relationship, different types of relationships help build a social support network that is important for your physical and mental well-being. To better understand and discuss these relationships, it can help to learn more about the different types of relationships people can have.
What is a relationship?
A relationship is any connection between two people, which can be positive or negative. You can have relationships with many people, including family and friends. The phrase “being in a relationship”, although it is associated with homosexuality, can refer to different associations that one person has with another person. “Being in a relationship” does not always mean that there is an intimate relationship, emotional connection, and/or commitment. People engage in many types of relationships with unique characteristics.
Types of Leadership Relationships
Relationships fall into one of several categories (although these can sometimes overlap):
- Family relationships
- Friend
- Awareness
- A romantic relationship
- Sex
- Professional relationships
- Situational relations (sometimes called “situations”)
These different types of relationships can vary in terms of proximity, and there are different types of relationships within each of these basic types. Here are some of the different types of relationships you may encounter at some point in your life. Although there are many types of relationships, four main types are recognized as family relationships, romantic relationships, friendships and friends.
A romantic relationship
A romantic relationship is characterized by affection and love for the other person. Although romantic love can vary, it usually involves affection, intimacy, and personal commitment.
Experts have discovered many different ways to describe human emotions and express their love. For example, psychologists suggest three main components of love: passion, intimacy, and decision/decision making.
Romantic love is a combination of longing and intimacy. Romantic relationships change over time. At the beginning of a relationship, people often have strong feelings of longing. During the first phase of love, the brain releases certain neurotransmitters (dopamine, oxytocin, and serotonin) that make people feel happy and “in love.”
Over time, these effects begin to decrease in intensity. As the relationship develops, people develop a deeper level of emotional connection and understanding. Relationships are often rocky at first. Although the initial feelings of interest diminish over time, the feelings of trust, emotional connection, and commitment become stronger.
Platonic Relations
A platonic relationship is a type of friendship that involves a close and intimate connection without sex or love. These relationships are also known:
- Getting closer
- depends
- Understanding
- Respect
- Management
- Support
- Honesty
- Acceptance
Platonic relationships can take place in many places and can include friendships between men and women or between men and women. You can start a platonic relationship with a classmate or colleague, or you can connect with someone in another setting, such as a restaurant, sports, or volunteer organization. – Involvement. This type of relationship can play an important role in the social support necessary for your health and well-being.
Research shows that platonic friendships can help reduce your risk of disease, reduce your depression or anxiety, and boost your immune system. Platonic relationships are about intimacy and non-sexual friendship. Sometimes, a platonic relationship can change over time and turn into a romantic or sexual relationship.
Codependent Relationships
A codependent relationship is an unhealthy, dysfunctional relationship in which one partner is emotionally, physically, or mentally dependent on the other.
It is also common for both partners to become dependent on each other. Both can change in the role of care, changing between the caregiver and the care recipient.
Characteristics of a codependent relationship include:
- Act as the giver while the other person acts as the receiver
- Try not to argue with the other person
- You want to request permission to do something
- To save or deliver the other person from their actions
- Do what makes someone happy, even if it makes you uncomfortable
- Feeling like you don’t know who you are in the relationship
- Lift the other person up even if they have done nothing to earn your favor and admiration
However, not all codependent relationships are the same. They can vary in severity. Codependency can affect all types of relationships, including relationships between romantic partners, parents and children, friendships, other family members, and even co-workers. Dependent relationships work together. While one partner may seem “wanted”, the other may feel comfortable being wanted. A person who is more comfortable than important, for example, can avoid focusing on their own needs by choosing a partner who constantly watches over them.
Casual relationships
A casual relationship usually involves a romantic relationship that may involve sex without the expectation of monogamy or commitment. However, experts suggest that the term is vague and can mean different things to different people. According to the authors of a study published in the Canadian Journal of Human Sexuality, casual relationships can include situations such as:
- one night practice
- Warehouse call
- “sex” friend
- Friends with benefits
These relationships continue to vary in frequency of contact, type of contact, amount of personal disclosure, social interaction, and degree of friendship. The study found that people with more sexual experience can recognize the meaning of these symptoms than those with less sexual experience. Casual relationships are common among young people. As long as a normal relationship is characterized by communication and trust, they can have many positive sexual benefits. They can satisfy the need for sex, intimacy, connection, and companionship without the emotional demands and commitment of a more serious relationship. Casual relationships are most common among young people, but people of all ages can be involved in this type of relationship. Agreement and communication are the keys.
Open relationship
An open relationship is a type of non-cohabiting relationship in which one or more partners are sexually active or have relationships with other people. But those who agree to have sex with others are open to relationships, but may have certain conditions or weaknesses. An open relationship can happen in any type of romantic relationship, be it casual, romantic, or married.
Non-same-sex relationships are stigmatized. But research shows that about 21% to 22% of adults will be involved in some type of relationship at some point in their lives. The ability to engage in open relationships also depends on gender and sexual orientation. Men reported having a higher number of open relationships than women; those who identify as gay, lesbian and bisexual compared to those who identify as gay and bisexual are more likely to report that they have an open relationship.
Such relationships can be beneficial, including increased sexual freedom and pitfalls such as jealousy and emotional pain. Open relationships are more successful when couples establish personal, emotional, and sexual boundaries and communicate their feelings and needs clearly. An open relationship is a form of trust. Although there is an emotional and often physical connection between two people in a relationship, they have a close relationship with others outside of the relationship.
A toxic relationship
A toxic relationship is a type of relationship where emotional, physical, or spiritual well-being is damaged in some way. Such relationships often leave you feeling embarrassed, disappointed, misunderstood, or unsupported. Any type of relationship can be toxic, including friendships, family relationships, romantic relationships, or work relationships.
Characteristics of toxic relationships are:
- There is no support
- Blame it
- Competition
- Management skills
- No respect
- Dishonesty
- gas fire
- Enmity
- Jealousy
- Violent behavior
- Bad communication
- Anxiety
Sometimes, everyone in the relationship plays a role in creating this poison. For example, you may be involved in toxicity if you are constantly aggressive, judgmental, insecure, and negative.
In other cases, the person in the relationship may behave in a way that creates toxic effects. This may be intentional, but in other cases people may not fully understand how they affect others. Because of their past experiences in relationships, often in the home they grew up in, they may not know other ways to communicate. This doesn’t just cause dissatisfaction: toxic relationships can seriously damage your health. For example, according to one study, stress from bad relationships affects heart health. Feelings of isolation and misunderstanding in relationships can also lead to loneliness, which has been shown to have negative effects on physical and mental health.
Toxic relationships can be stressful, hurtful, and even abusive. If you have a toxic relationship with someone in your life, try to create boundaries to protect yourself. Talk to a mental health professional or consider ending the relationship if this bothers you.
