I'm a relationship expert — this is the No. 1 thing couples should do if they want a happy relationship

Yahoo

10-07-2025

The couples that clean together, stay together.
A relationship counselor believes that the trick to maintaining a happy romantic relationship is doing mundane, daily chores with your significant other.
'When you share even small chores, you show each other that you are equals,' Dr. Hannah Lawson, who has over 12 years of experience working with couples and in behavioral psychology, told the Daily Mail.
Surprisingly, according to Lawson, small tasks like setting the table or loading the dishwasher together can be more meaningful and have more of an impact on a relationship than 'big romantic gestures.'
Usually, when one person in the relationship, oftentimes the woman, is left to check things off the household to-do list by themselves, feelings of resentment build up.
When trivial tasks are performed by two people, it not only empowers a couple to feel like a team working together, but it also serves as an opportunity for two people to have meaningful conversations side-by-side.
'Think of it as a small daily ritual that pays you back with trust, respect, and a stronger emotional connection,' the expert told the outlet.
For happiness in a relationship, aside from doing dishes together, a study revealed that moments of silence with your significant other could be a sign of a healthy relationship.
'Consider two exchanges between romantic partners: They look into each other's eyes sharing intimacy and mutual understanding, or, a glance instead expresses judgment and displeasure as now they achieve a shared understanding that one partner has let down the other,' authors of a study published in the journal Motivation and Emotion wrote.
'In both instances, nothing is said, yet much is communicated.'
To come to this interesting conclusion, a team of researchers at the University of Reading conducted four different studies to learn how silent moments can influence relationships.
One group of study participants was asked to recall the last time they had a moment of silence between them and their partner and what caused it.
Another group was asked the same thing, but only if it happened in a previous unhealthy relationship. These study participants were also asked how the silent moment came about and how it made them feel.
Based on the responses, moments of silence that seemed malicious brought out negative feelings — while natural silence was associated with intimacy and closeness.