Relationships are not easy, and most come with an expiration date.
Especially in today’s fast-paced world where the temptation and options are almost infinite, it can be challenging to stay committed to one person for a long time.
That is not to say that a relationship is not worth holding on to.
We all get the gooey feeling when we see an old couple walking down the street, holding each other’s hands, and laughing.
Growing old together is a dream for all romantics and something many of us hope to find in our lives as well.
However, getting there takes a lot of work and commitment.
When we find something good, we should hold on to it as tightly as possible.
And a relationship that makes you happy is worth some of the hardships that naturally come along when we are trying to share our life with someone.
The following are 20 reasons why you should try to make a relationship work even when it’s hard.
Table of Contents
1. Sense of Security
Relationships provide us with a warm sense of security that is seldom found on our own – no matter how successful, confident, or secure we are.
Being with a loving partner provides us with care and a safety net that we can fall back on when the need arises.
So, letting go of a good relationship can leave us vulnerable.
A relationship with a foundation or base of love and care can still be difficult to manage.
After all, nothing that is good in life comes without some effort and dedication.
The protection of a long-term, secure relationship can go a long way, and it is worth fighting for.
2. Perfect Intimacy
If you are in a loving and devoted relationship, then you surely realize that one of the biggest perks is the amazing intimacy you have with your partner.
You both understand each other, body and soul, on a level that is unmatched and that is worth holding on to.
Logistics can sometimes make it hard to keep a relationship afloat but finding an excellent intimate match is also not easy.
Intimacy doesn’t only refer to sex either. It is the way you can find physical comfort with each other with just a small touch or a hug that is special and shouldn’t be taken for granted.
3. No One Knows You Better
Compatibility is a tough thing to find, even when we have a lot of options around us. Being in a relationship requires us to try to understand each other truly.
From what food the other person likes to emotional triggers, partners know each other much deeper.
Giving that up is hard.
If the relationship is rocky but can be saved, then it’s worth a shot to try and save it because it might take a long time before you can establish that level of understanding with another person again.
4. A Deep Love
Love is at the heart of every solid relationship, and if your relationship has that foundation, the extra effort to hold the building up is warranted.
Infatuation and attraction aren’t complicated, but truly loving relationships have a bond that goes beyond mutual likeness or interest.
That depth of love is hard to find in casual flings or passing affairs.
So, having a long-term partner teaches us how rich love can truly be and exactly why it is worth the struggle.
5. An Opportunity to Grow
All relationships have their ups and downs.
If your relationship doesn’t have its heated moments, there might be a lack of healthy communication or interest from either or both sides.
These small setbacks and challenges help us grow and learn together.
Some obstacles might seem too difficult where you would want to give up but staying strong in the face of adversity makes us resilient and better as people.
Instead of being discouraged, using the challenge to learn from is a positive mindset that can make your commitment to each other stronger than ever.
6. A Shared Future
Being in a happy relationship means you have thought of a future together.
You have made plans and molded your dreams to make room for your partner, which is exciting and even daring.
Ending a relationship would mean you are giving up that dreamy future as well.
Sure, we never know where life will take us, but we certainly try our best to carve out a good path for ourselves.
Having a partner by our side only makes things more fun and real. If you still see a spark in your relationship, not letting the flames die is worth it for your shared future.
7. A Comfortable Living
We love a comfortable routine.
Coming back home to familiar scents, knowing what goes where, and not worrying about certain things that you know your partner has under control.
Even when not sharing a space, just having a certain way of life that you share with your partner is priceless.
Of course, a routine shouldn’t be the only reason to hold on to a relationship, but if you recognize the love and ease there, navigating through difficult times should become a trifle easier seeing the reward of a good life that you can share with a person worth the trouble.
8. Less of a Risk
Putting yourself out there again and finding true love is not as easy as the movies might make it seem – especially after you have known and had a deep connection with someone.
The process of finding someone great again is a frustrating one.
An established relationship going through a dark period might seem too challenging to handle, but it might be worth it when you compare it to the risk you take when you have to start over completely.
9. Not Going the Easy Route
Often, when the going gets tough, we become tempted to just drop out, but that’s not how life goes.
It truly isn’t easy to keep going forward, especially when nothing around you is working in your favor.
We always desire to be strong, and making it through the rough patches is how we truly become resilient.
A relationship is about more than proving a point, and once you get over that hurdle, that feeling of having made it and sticking to your guns is one of a kind.
Not giving up when it’s hard tests our patience, but it is all worth it for the right person.
10. A Shared Sense of Pride
A relationship does not and cannot rely on one person; otherwise, it is simply not a relationship.
This boat needs to be captained by two, especially through the storm.
When both of you sacrifice and compromise for the sake of this relationship, it becomes a shared mission.
Even though there is pain and hurt, when both of you are committed to the cause it provides another layer of comfort and pride.
The shared sense of pride is a booster for your relationship when you come out on the other side, still together.
11. It’s Going to Get Better
Through thick and thin, people are meant to find a way together. Just because everything seems complicated now does not mean that it will never get better.
There’s always – every single time – a light at the end of the tunnel, and it’s up to us not to stop midway.
For a person who loves you and cares for you, enduring the darkness is worth it.
We must hold on to optimism and determination because better days are ahead, especially when a relationship has endured rough times.
12. The Long-Term Investment
Relationships require a lot of investment. From time to emotion, there is a lot that we put in from the beginning to blossom the bud of love into a fully bloomed flower.
To put that kind of intense effort into something only to have it end abruptly defeats the purpose of the relationship itself.
That is not to say that you should stick around in a loveless affair only because you have put so much into it.
But a loving prospect that is going through turmoil is different. Holding on to that investment for a much-deserved reward, in the long run, is a logical decision.
13. The Social Circle
Sharing a relationship also means building a world around us that shares most aspects of our lives.
Despite having our groups of friends and interests, it is only natural that we come to share our social circle with our partners.
Whether it’s a double date or a game night, we come to create a bubble of shared friendships.
Ending a relationship can also compromise this support system and it can take a while to build that back up again.
Whether our mutuals remain with us or not through the awkwardness of all the ties being severed is another consequence of ending a relationship.
14. Loving Families
If you are in a long-term, healthy relationship, the chances are that you have gotten close to each other’s families as well.
Not all families are welcoming or close-knit, but it isn’t unusual to form a connection with your partner’s loved ones.
Sometimes these connections take up a value of their own, which is ideal.
These bonds are valuable and provide support to us whenever we are in need.
Breaking up with a person also entails letting go of those precious relationships, which might not be worth it at all, given that we can make the relationship work.
15. Not Losing Time
To take a love interest to the level of a relationship, we must put in a lot of time – the time to get to know the other person, the time that we make for each other, and the time to keep the relationship going on strong despite our commitments.
Starting over with another person, that is, after we even find someone amazing, means we must go through the process again.
A relationship takes work, and ending one that could have worked with a bit more effort might not be worth the trouble of starting over again.
16. Temporary Hurt Over Permanent Pain
Ask all the happy and ideal-looking couples how they reached a point of such mutual understanding, and they’ll tell you that it wasn’t easy.
People go through long-distance torture, periods of uncertainty, financial struggles, and emotional overload to still come out on top and navigate their struggles with an elevated love for each other.
So, whatever it is that you are going through may seem hard, but when taken in the context of your life, this turmoil may be temporary.
If the person is worth fighting for, fight for them through this hard time than risk a world of pain for yourself if you lose them entirely.
17. Being an Example
You must have that old couple in your life that you look toward and sigh because they are just so perfect together.
How about telling that story yourself?
All great love stories have their troublesome arcs that come close to ending the story, but the inspiring ones always find a happy ending.
Your relationship is about you and your partner, but you can make it a symbol of love for everyone around you.
This is not just for the outsiders but for yourself, as you will find strength in your struggles and be inspired by your efforts together.
18. Holding Yourself Accountable
When there’s trouble in paradise, someone needs to step up and take responsibility.
Often, the problem isn’t the individual; in fact, both parties are guilty, but these rough patches give you a chance to own your mistakes and learn from them.
A big part of relationships is finding yourself and growing, and having a partner that challenges you to be a better, more loving, and wise version of yourself is worth the trouble.
So, not running away from the first signs of tension is a valuable mindset to have.
19. Creating Happiness Together
The reason why we all put so much effort into building a life with someone is happiness.
Pure and simple, we want to be happy, and when a person makes us happy, they become a big part of our lives – and sometimes the sole reason to keep moving forward.
Sometimes this happiness is impacted, where we struggle to see the positive points and question the relationship.
It all boils down to whether we have found happiness in the person before and if we think the person can still make us happy.
If the answer is yes, working on creating happiness together is a wise decision despite the risk of somber days.
20. Being Soulmates
We have come to understand things too mechanically in this age of science and technology. Everything has to have a reason and a logical explanation.
We even try to narrow down love to intricate formulas that are supposed to work whenever we need them to.
Love wouldn’t be love if it were that simple. There’s something magical about it that we cannot break down into atoms and molecules.
So, finding the love of your life and sticking with them might not be a fairytale affair, but once we have that person who feels like our soulmate, we better hold on.
Final Thoughts
Nobody should be forced to stay in a relationship if they have fallen out of love, or worse, the relationship has become toxic.
But for those that still see a ray of light, holding on to a good thing can be worth it. A good relationship can and should be saved with the right intentions and some effort.
Sometimes the troubles that we face or the obstacles between our love can overwhelm us.
These shouldn’t steer us away from the love of our life or the promise of an amazing life that we can have with our partner.
