Friendships as Support for Couples
Friendships are a major factor in self-growth and the continuance of a healthy relationship. The importance of outside friendships in a healthy marriage can never be overestimated. If you or your partner surround yourselves only with friends who have a negative opinion on relationships and commitment as a lifestyle, it will eventually begin to degrade the foundations of your relationship, as well.
While it is expected that an adult can and will have many friends of varying backgrounds and personalities, the variety in friendships and the support structure that they provide on a personal level have a lot to do with a person’s outlook on life. Having friendships that span a variety of lifestyles and life stages is normal and healthy.
Friendships in Life Stages
It is also completely normal for friendships to come and go that reflect the stages of your life. For instance, new parents often find that they are making more friendships based on the introduction to other new parents. It becomes more difficult, at that time, to develop new friendships with people who are not in the same stage of life.
Social Groups Mirroring Behavior
Many of our behavior patters are mirrored in the social groups that we keep. If your social group consists entirely of divorced couples or singles, it will be difficult to find support and help in maintaining your relation ship on a healthy level.
Friendships as Support Structures
Friendships provide a wonderful support group for couples, acting as sounding boards for difficult times and as bell-ringers to help congratulate you on your accomplishments. Healthy friendships with other couples can often help keep a difficult marriage on the track of healing through informal counseling and support, mirroring a good relationship and communication.
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It is important to have outside friendships, and outside interests.
It is essential that both persons in a successful relationship take the time to pursue their own aspirations and dreams. We’re not talking about selfish, self indulgent, purposeless, time wasting distractions. We’re referring to meaningful pursuits that result in each partner achieving an important personal accomplishment. The fulfillment of this goal brings about a feeling of intense satisfaction, joy, and fulfillment. Examples include such things as a desire to finish school, to pursue training for a new career, to lose weight, to pay off credit card debt, to learn to speak another language, to pursue a hobby, to deepen one’s spiritual connection, to travel, or whatever. Each person has their own individual longings and desires that they wish to fulfill.