How to Build a Healthy, Mature Relationship

As a relationship and dating coach, I strive to help couples build relationships that are mature, committed, passionate, and free of conflict.

Building this type of deep and passionate relationship with your spouse or partner requires a certain amount of knowledge. You need to know, for example, how to resolve simple conflicts and avoid screaming matches. You need to know how to avoid problems with infidelity or cheating, what your rights and responsibilities are within the partnership, how to keep your sex life healthy, and so on.

That's where this article comes in. On this page, you'll find the information and advice that you'll need to build a healthy and mature romantic relationship with your spouse or partner. If you read the entire article and put my advice into practice, you'll be well on your way to living happily ever after with the love of your life. Let's get started, shall we?

PART ONE: What Does a Healthy Relationship Look Like?

Before we begin discussing how to build a better relationship, let's first talk about what a healthy relationship actually is. I mean, it sounds pretty simple, right? But really, the ideal relationship – one that's mature and committed, with a very strong bond between two partners – involves a number of different factors.

Monogamy/Faithfulness

Cheating ruins relationships – often irreparably. The loss of trust (arguably the most critical and fundamental component of a strong relationship) inevitable in the wake of this behavior can destroy a couple's bond in the blink of an eye; infidelity has absolutely no place in a healthy relationship.

Staying faithful and avoiding any 'sinful' temptations may sound straightforward, but many people have trouble maintaining their self-discipline. If you're the type that often gets wound up in affairs or 'flings' when you're in a relationship, then you need to address this issue before you do anything else.

Simply put, most couples never fully recover from an affair. While things may be okay in the long run, the impact that cheating has on the trust between you and your partner can take years to heal... if it ever does heal.

Total Trust & No Jealousy Issues

Trust is crucial for several reasons. For starters, it allows both you and your partner to breathe easily, meaning neither of you has to worry when the other person is off on a business trip, out late at the nightclub with friends, etc.

Trust also means that you and your significant other don't ever feel the need to pry into one another's private matters, secretly checking your partner's emails and text messages, etc.

Another reason trust is so crucial is because it gives you (and your partner) the strength to quash any feelings of jealousy.

For example, let's say your spouse is out of town for a few days and doesn't call you after a late night of partying. Your first reaction might be to become jealous, letting your imagination run wild and jump to conclusions about your lover's infidelity.

If you and your significant other have always been truthful with one another, then you'll know that these horrible fantasies of cheating and infidelity that pop into your mind when your spouse fails to phone you after a night out are simply that: stupid, unrealistic fears that are totally unfounded. Reminding yourself that your partner is trustworthy, you can sleep easily knowing that nothing sinister is going on. You will also be refraining from throwing wild and terrible accusations at your loving partner that may damage the balance of trust in your relationship in the future.

Finally, trust is critical if you want to establish a deep connection with your partner – the type of connection that builds life-long bonds and holds marriages together through thick and thin. You and your partner are a team, standing together to face all of the challenges life throws your way. Knowing that the other person "has your back," no matter what, relies on a deep and ingrained understanding of trust.