Is Respect Alive and Well in Your Relationship?

Mutual respect between two people makes for a strong relationship.If you only watch movies or TV, you might come to believe that as long as the sex is good, the relationship is, too.

But if you live in the real world, you may have noticed that’s not true. Look around you. The best, longest-lasting relationships are built on something else altogether. Something that doesn’t ride the waves of our emotions or hormones.

That special something found in the best relationships is mutual respect.

Respect: We Want It

If you’re honest with yourself, you’d have to admit that you would love to be respected.

Who wouldn’t? It’s a great feeling to know that someone believes we have value. They listen to our ideas. They care about how we feel. They treat us like we are important.

So why do some of us get into relationships where we are not respected?

Respect: We Deserve It

Sometimes we have lost faith in our right to be respected. Something in our past has convinced us that we don’t have value. Someone told us we don’t deserve respect any more.

That can lead us to settle for something less than a healthy relationship in which we are treasured just for who we are.

In truth, nothing can change your right to be respected. Nor mine. We are human beings with a dignity bestowed on us the moment we came into being. Our experiences may make us feel tarnished, but they can’t change our worth.

Respect: What It Looks Like

If you have spent significant time without receiving respect, how will you know when you find someone who does respect you? And how will you learn to respect others in healthy ways?

Here’s an infographic that helps you see what respect looks like in real relationships.

Respectful relationships include equality, good communication, and encouragement toward personal growth.

Learn to Build Lasting Relationships Founded on Respect

So here’s the secret: If you truly want good relationships, start by reclaiming your self-respect.

As the famous author Fyodor Dostoyevsky once wrote:

“If you want to be respected by others, the great thing is to respect yourself. Only by that, only by self-respect will you compel others to respect you.”

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At Choices Pregnancy Center, we care about you as a whole person—
pregnant or not.
In fact, we find that by helping you develop healthy relationships,
we may help you avoid ever having to deal with
a pregnancy you didn’t want.

So stop on in and talk with us.
We have free tools and resources we’d be happy to share with you
to help you move your relationships in the direction you really want them to go.