What is relational intimacy?
Relational intimacy is a concept that refers to the deep emotional connection between two individuals in a romantic relationship. It involves a profound understanding of one another's thoughts, feelings, desires, and needs, which leads to an unspoken level of trust and mutual respect. Couples who experience relational intimacy have a strong sense of belonging together and feel secure and supported by their partner.
Maintaining this type of intimacy can be challenging for military couples due to environmental constraints such as frequent deployments, long separations, limited communication, and stressful work conditions.
How do military couples preserve relational intimacy despite environmental constraints?
To preserve relational intimacy while serving in the military, couples need to establish clear expectations and boundaries, communicate effectively, stay connected through technology, prioritize time together, engage in healthy self-care practices, and make intentional efforts to stay emotionally close. Military spouses must also deal with loneliness, anxiety, depression, financial stress, and social isolation while managing home responsibilities alone.
1. Establish Clear Expectations and Boundaries: Communication is crucial for preserving relational intimacy in military relationships. Military couples should discuss what they expect from each other during deployment and set clear boundaries regarding phone calls, emails, video chats, and letters.
Agree on when and how often to contact each other and what types of information to share. This helps build trust and reduces misunderstandings.
2. Stay Connected Through Technology: With today's technological advancements, there are various ways for military couples to keep in touch even when apart. Using apps like FaceTime or Skype allows them to see and hear each other regularly, making it easier to connect and stay up-to-date on daily activities.
Sharing pictures, videos, and messages can help alleviate loneliness and foster a sense of closeness.
3. Prioritize Time Together: Couples who prioritize their relationship over work or other obligations demonstrate commitment and loyalty to one another. When possible, take vacations or weekend getaways to reconnect, spend quality time together, and strengthen the bond. Doing so prevents resentment and bitterness from building up, leading to feelings of disconnection and frustration.
4. Engage in Healthy Self-Care Practices: Military spouses need to practice self-care by getting enough sleep, eating healthily, exercising regularly, managing stress effectively, and seeking support if needed. It is also important to maintain hobbies, interests, and social connections that provide meaning and purpose outside of the relationship. By taking care of oneself, individuals become more resilient and better able to cope with challenges.
5. Make Intentional Efforts to Stay Emotionally Close: Military couples should make intentional efforts to stay emotionally close despite geographical distance. This involves active listening skills, emotional vulnerability, and showing appreciation for one another's sacrifices and contributions. Talking about hopes, dreams, fears, insecurities, and desires allows them to develop a deeper understanding of each other and feel more connected.
How do military couples preserve relational intimacy despite environmental constraints?
The ability to maintain a healthy relationship is not easy for anyone but particularly difficult for military couples due to frequent separation, stressful conditions, and social isolation. Some strategies that can be used by military couples to preserve their relationship include staying in touch through phone calls, video chats, and letters. Another strategy is spending quality time together when reunited.