Finding “the one” was hard enough. But finding him or her doesn’t mean that it’s all smooth sailing from here on out. Once you’ve decided to officially start a life together—things change. Maybe you were accustomed to going out with friends on the weekend and your SO is more of a homebody. That might end up being the perfect yin-yang situation. But more often, partners find that merging their social lives and social styles is a little more complicated, and takes a little more finesse. So how do you negotiate your social life to come up with the perfect marriage—pun intended—of social interaction that works for both of you?
We’ve got a few tips, so keep reading.
You don’t.
OK, that sounds harsh. But it’s true. Relationships take work and compromise, and this isn’t just limited to the hard stuff, like finances and family planning and communication. It applies to every aspect of your partnership.
What this means for your social life is that you have to be open to making sacrifices for your partner. Maybe you don’t spend every single weekend clubbing with your girlfriends. Or if you’re the homebody, maybe you make a commitment to regularly venture out of your comfort zone and do something that your extrovert partner enjoys.
You don’t have to do something you hate all the time. But being receptive to the experiences your partner enjoys is a great way to keep a positive attitude and an open mind.
Be respectful of your partner’s friends and family.
Even if you don’t now, you and your significant other had separate lives at one time. Make sure to maintain space in the relationship to continue those connections. While you are the center of one another’s lives now, that doesn’t mean that there’s no room for anyone else. Give each other freedom to regularly connect with friends and family, even without the other, when warranted. Absence does make the heart grow fonder, after all.
Make new friends, together.
Making couple friends can be tough, but it’s completely doable. Find activities that you can both enjoy, like joining a hiking club, volunteering for a neighborhood association, or playing in a recreational sports league. These are all great places to meet other couples that are in the same phase of life as you. And if you’re into app-based networking, check out Couplr, the app that brings like-minded couples together to socialize.
