How to Take Care of Your Partner's Emotional Needs?

Emotionally unsatisfying relationships are one of the worst things anyone could experience. We’re talking about relationships where one partner’s emotional needs are not met.

Relationships of this sort feel very isolating as if one person is alone in the relationship.

This could happen for any number of reasons. Miscommunications, misunderstandings, taking a relationship for granted, etc.

The good thing to know here is that it’s not the end of the world. Any relationship problem can be overcome if both parties are willing to take a moment and listen to each other.

This article will help any struggling couple solve their emotional needs without going through needless drama or beating around the bush.

1. Express More Affection:

If you ever feel like you’re going through the motions in your relationship, it’s time to re-examine the whole thing.

One of the most rewarding parts of a relationship is the affection that’s shared between a couple. The worst thing you could do is neglect it, as it makes either one of you feel lesser.

Start telling your partner how much you love them, value them, and appreciate them being in your life.

Those words carry a lot of weight when you’ve been together for a while, so don’t be afraid of using sweet words every now and then.

2. Spend More Time Being Intimate:

There’s no denying this one. Intimacy is a big part of any successful relationship. The way you touch your partner, hold their hands, or kiss them can help you both get through the tough times.

If it’s been a while since you’ve been in close proximity to each other, you know what to do now. Sit down with your partner and have a discussion about the whole thing if necessary.

Some couples are still shy about being physical, so taking the time to understand where this shyness comes from can bring you closer together, satisfying your emotional needs in the process.

3. Accept Each Other:

Great relationships are a sanctuary for your mental well-being. It should be a union where both parties accept each other for who they are.

If, for some reason, you feel there’s a misunderstanding here, you need to communicate that.

While it might sound vague, acceptance means a lot of things. It’s about building that sense of belonging where you two fit within each other’s lives.

Some ways of practising acceptance when around each other are:

• Meeting friends and family.
• Doing more shared activities together.
• Discussing common goals and dreams in life.
• Asking for advice or help when needed.

Accepting each other for your flaws and imperfections can diffuse any emotional stress right then and there.

4. Validate Their Feelings:

While it’s important to be objective in certain situations, it’s also equally important to validate each other’s feelings. When your partner is feeling down after a long day at work, the best thing you can do is acknowledge that.

Come at the issue from a place of empathy. Tell them it’s fine to feel those things and that the bad times will pass.

Any feelings that are not validated tend to build up and turn into resentment later, so it’s best to solve this whenever either of you is feeling extra stressed.

5. Give Them Space:

Some relationships suffer when partners spend a lot of time with each other at the expense of their own independence.

To see if this is happening, all you have to do is think about whether your identity has blurred into theirs. If that’s the case, you know you need some “me” time.

Remember that a relationship is complementary to a good life. If you don’t have your priorities in order, the relationship will feel suffocating if it’s all you have.

The cure for this one is to do more stuff on your own.

Work on yourself more, give more time to your hobbies, and develop a sense of autonomy, and your emotional bond will grow stronger.

6. Strengthen That Feeling of Security:

Security can encompass a lot of different things in a healthy relationship. There’s the feeling of security you have when you’re both financially well.

However, in the context of meeting your emotional needs, security means:

• Respecting each other’s boundaries.
• Sharing feelings openly without judgement.
• Having the support you need when making decisions.
• Feeling physically safe around them.

These things should be solid. If there’s any disagreement on any one of the above, you have to work together to get past the issue.

Keep in mind that abuse, be it physical or emotional, can destroy any sense of security in a relationship. If there’s any of that going on, you need to seek professional help.

7. Prioritise Them:

While we did mention giving each other space, you also need to strike a balance where your partner feels like they’re a top priority for you.

Prioritisation isn’t just being around each other. It could mean you take too long to reply to their text messages, you don’t go out with them often, or you don’t show up when needed.

Depending on your unique personality, fixing this issue can take anywhere from one single conversation to months of re-prioritizing your partner’s needs.

Your actions here hold more weight than your words. You need to actually DO the things that signal your partner is a priority in your life.

8. Listen & Communicate More:

The two things go hand in hand. Effective communication comes when you listen to your partner’s needs, and listening leads to effective communication and conflict resolution.

How do you get good at both? You slow down and hear each other out whenever you have to discuss something.

It’s impossible to agree on your emotional needs if one person talks and the other ignores them.

Instead, the way forward is to become great, active listeners around each other. Try to do this every day, and your ability to get past problems will quadruple overtime.

9. Help Them Out More:

To come full circle with all of this, help your partner get more done.

If you’ve decided to split the chores between one of you on a given day, you can take on more of the daily responsibilities, leaving them with more time to do other things.

If there’s a problem with finances, help them out if you can, or settle on a budget so you two don’t suffer through the financial problem again.

Other ways you can help each other:

• Car needs a refill? Volunteer to do it.
• Too tired to mow the lawn? Take it off their hands this time.
• Groceries are running out, and you’re busy cleaning the house? Buy them and get more done in less time.
• Baby needs a diaper change? Even if you’re the dad, you’re still responsible, so don’t make excuses here.

The list goes on. Obviously, you need to split things 50/50 between the both of you, and don’t pressure your partner into doing more stuff just for the sake of it.

This last tip can bring back team unity to a relationship, helping resolve some of the emotional needs that tend to go unnoticed.

In Conclusion:

If you care about your relationship, you need to nurture it every day.

Couples get complacent with what they have. They neglect each other and make all sorts of mistakes, sometimes without them noticing.

Resentment, feeling distant, not having enough sex, and other problems are all common occurrences.

This article has shed some light on the common steps you can take to resolve any unmet emotional needs, and in the process, achieve greater harmony in your relationship.

It’s up to you to put all of that into practice now.