"Pour into those who equally pour into you. People who understand and express their gratitude through the five principles of love language make for good companions and friends."
-WiL Turner
In relationships, there are five love languages that determine how people acquire and show affection. Knowing and understanding the love language of your loved ones, partner's and friends and their need for physical or emotional affection, especially on Valentine's Day, can make them feel respected, valued, welcomed, and loved.
Almost every one of us wishes for those we love to show us how much they love, appreciate, and care for us. However, some may find it difficult or are incapable of overt displays of affection.
If you find it difficult to connect or build meaningful relationships with your loved ones, friends, or coworkers, you may want to read about the five love languages:
What Are The Five Major Love Languages?
● Positive affirmations
● Spending quality time with loved ones and friends are important.
● Physical contact
● Service to others
● Giving and receiving presents
In reflection, understanding the five love languages is a surprisingly basic notion that is revolutionary in regard to building healthy relationships. For example, while you may value words of encouragement, your loved ones or friends may value bonding time and touch.
You might write your loved ones or friends affirming words of thoughtfulness, consideration, and appreciation all day in an attempt to communicate with those you love who rely on your ability to accommodate their physical, emotional, and social needs. Meanwhile, on the flip side, some loved ones or friends may be pondering how much you care for them, if at all, should your love language not be in alignment with theirs.
If in return, you are not able to equally and consistently reciprocate the same level of affection, appreciation, and regards of love, those who pour into you on a daily basis may experience feelings of disregard, neglect, or un-appreciation as a result of your emotional ineptitude.
It is normal to desire the appreciation, consideration, respect, acceptance, and love of your loved ones and friends. Understanding the love languages of others helps us to build meaningful, in-depth relationships.
Positive Affirmations
People who appreciate and understand the importance and value of verbal acknowledgments of love, appreciation, words of encouragement and gratitude, or communications by phone calls, text messages, or exchanges via social media are more likely to be healthier, if not happier individuals.
Not to presume that the existence or lives of your loved ones or friends solely revolve around you or only when it benefits you. These positive expressions reassure those of your loved ones and friends who genuinely love, appreciate, and take the time out of their otherwise busy day; they should indicate to you that you are valued and an integral part of their life.
Take the love language quiz today.
Spending quality time with our loved ones and friends is important. The desire for your loved ones, companions, and friends to genuinely spend quality time with you is a sign of how much they appreciate, accept, trust, value, love you, and enjoy being in your company. We all want to be loved, appreciated, accepted, and affirmed. All relationships worth nurturing require us to do our part to help them flourish. When we are proactively present to listen or be there for those we love, it ensures our loved ones and friends that we genuinely value and care for them.
While being actively nurturing meaningful and healthy relationships with your loved ones and friends, it is important that you acknowledge their love language and the fact that they may have the same or different physical, emotional, or social needs than you. Those of your loved ones and friends who have an invested interest in spending quality time with you are worth having in your life. Keep them close. It is a blessing to have family and good friends.
Physical Contact
Physical touch provides us with a sense of comfort, warmth, acceptance, and belonging.
The physical expressions of love, such as hugging, linking arms, cuddling, and kissing, are top of the list of most of our social and emotional needs.
Such physical demonstrations of love are reassuring to both those who initiate and those who receive. The gratification and reward of physical touch and affection can be traced back to our youth. Most children feel the most cared for and loved by their families when they feel safe, included and are hugged, kissed, or caressed.
Service To Others
There are those of us in the world who find great joy and fulfillment in being of service to others. Service to others has its intrinsic rewards.
However, if service to others is your definition of love, you should know that your interpretation as such may be quite different than that of your loved ones and friends, according to their love language.
Sadly, those who are givers by nature quite often find themselves in a place of disappointment and loneliness when it comes to serving those of their loved ones and friends who are emotionally incapable of reciprocating. It is one hope they do, love, and appreciate you, but in their own way.
Those who devote their lives and time to supporting and being of service to their loved ones, friends, and communities, quite often feel guilty or selfish when it comes to taking care of themselves. Those who are innately giving procure great joy in being able to do so. Serving others gives one a greater sense of purpose in the world.
Giving And Receiving Presents
There is a variant degree of complexity that must be taken into consideration when it comes to the love languages of giving and receiving. How you instinctively give love may not be the same as how you receive love. These factors, for the most part, should align, but not always. For instance, you may enjoy giving gifts to others, but you do not enjoy receiving them. You may enjoy surprising your loved ones and friends but dislike surprises in return.
In regards to giving and receiving, it is important for you to have a healthy perception of the two so that the outcomes reflect that which you hope or desire—keeping in mind that when we give a gift, it is a gift. The degree to which you give to should not be compared or measured in quantity or expectation of equal reciprocation.
To ensure that the love you give to your loved ones and friends is aligned with your social and emotional desires, it is important to understand that as one who gives, it is not realistic to presume that those you give to will return you the same gift of love and affection. A gift is a gift.
The principle of giving is simple. When people express their love for others or vice versa, they feel special. It is not about the value of the thing, but the symbolic significance and the psychological benefits of receiving our loved ones and friends care and appreciation in any form they are able to render is worth valuing. Learn more about secrets to a healthy relationship.
The Final Message
The incredible thing about love is that it comes in all forms. To what degree you choose to give and receive love is up to us.
Although our love languages may be different, the end goal is to cultivate relationships that add meaning and value to our lives.
Knowing the love language of your loved ones and friends will allow you to nurture healthier relationships with them. Being attentive to the physical, emotional, and social needs of those you love takes time and effort but are worth it. For more tips on how you can build meaningful relationships, Check out the Living From Within blog at livingwellwithwil.com. Improve the way you think, look, feel, socially interact and live. Subscribe to the Living with Wil blog and podcast and video channel at Living Well with WiL today. You are not alone! Be healthy.
Be happy, always. Keep spreading and sharing those smiles.