by Teresa Greenleaf You have all your terrible dates behind. Finally, you have found a reliable partner. Now thoughts about marriage appear more often and do not seem unrealistic. How do you know if you are ready to get married? Here is our checklist. If you can confidently say ‘yes’ to each point, then you are in a healthy relationship and feel free to plan a marriage.
1. Each partner has a full life outside the relationship
You must understand that marriage is not a solution to your problems. It will not save you from loneliness and will not give endless happiness. To create a full-fledged relationship, two full-fledged people are needed. Although age is only a number, you can get married from the age of 18 (or in some states younger!). However, many psychologists believe that the optimal age for marriage comes after 25 years. People married at this age are many times less likely to divorce.
2. You love your partner as he/she is
Before marriage, you should know your partner well, both on the good and the bad side. The most important thing is to accept all the advantages and disadvantages unconditionally. What annoys you in your boyfriend or girlfriend can become completely unbearable over time. Different daily routines or everyday habits – do not hope that the person will somehow change. Consider that a person will always be so. So think it over carefully before engagement.
3. Harmony in everyday life
Life together is not one endless romantic date. There are disagreements and disputes, and you do not wake up every day in a good mood. Do you imagine? Are you ready, even in this case, to wake up next to this person, to share the household, to be sick or annoyed? Still ‘yes’? Well, you can go to the next point.
4. You are not interested in other people in a romantic way
In the vast majority of cases, marriage implies the presence of one partner. If you like the idea of monogamy, engagement is an appropriate step. If you periodically think about relationships with someone else, then take your time.
5. You get better together
Your partner is honest with you; he/she pleases and motivates you. Involvement means that you are more patient and more pleasant when you are next to each other. If you are in a toxic relationship, then why bind yourself in such a bond for life?
6. You are a team
Compromise does not always mean a 50% concession. Sometimes it is 100% of one of the parties. If you want to spend your holidays in Disney World, but your partner would prefer to go to the Bahamas, the 50/50 compromise will leave you both in the Atlantic Ocean. It must be remembered that you are not fighting against each other. You are together against the problem.
7. You can talk about anything
Before you get engaged, you must have a relationship in which there are no forbidden topics. You should not be afraid of condemnation or hide your pain. Living in the same house, you cannot hide your feelings 24/7. In other words, you reduce the likelihood of a divorce if you spend enough time in a relationship to have time to check what real life is like. For most couples, this is probably at least one year.
8. You admire your partner
You adore your boy-/girlfriend so much that you are ready to share with him the rest of your life. Do not forget to show it.
Passion disturbs rationally evaluate a partner. However, values are the foundation of everything. Do you want children? How do you see your joint budget? If you come to an understanding of global things, then it will be much easier to deal with small household items.
If some of the points on our list make you doubt, then take your time. Maybe it is too soon to get married.
