The Most Important Factor in a Relationship Is Not Communication, But Respect
That form of love is much harder, primarily because it often doesn't feel very good. It's unglamorous. It's lots of early morning doctor's visits. It's cleaning up bodily fluids you'd rather not be cleaning up. It's dealing with another person's insecurities and fears even when you don't want to.
Most people never reach this deep, unconditional love
But this form of love is also far more satisfying and meaningful. And, at the end of the day, it brings true happiness, not just another series of highs.
It's not sexual attraction, looks, shared goals, religion or lack of, nor is it love
Happily Ever After doesn't exist. Every day you wake up and decide to love your partner and your life-the good, the bad and the ugly. Some days it's a struggle and some days you feel like the luckiest person in the world.
They get addicted to the ups and downs of romantic love. They are in it for the feels, so to speak. And when the feels run out, so do they.
Some people get into a relationship as a way to compensate for something they lack or hate within themselves. This is a one-way ticket to a toxic relationship because it makes your love conditional-you will love your partner only as long as they help you feel better about yourself. You will give to them only as long as they give to you. You will make them happy only as long as they make you happy.
What I can tell you is the #1 thing . . . is respect. There are times when you won't feel love for your partner. But you never want to lose respect for your partner. Once you lose respect, you will never get it back.
As I scanned through the hundreds of responses I received, I began to notice an interesting trend: People who had been through divorces almost always talked about communication being the most important part of making things work.