communication in the relationship
6 phrases that are more important than “I love you”
© Christine Schneider/Corbis
“I love you” is a wonderful confession of love. But there are phrases that are even more important for the relationship.
“I love you”, “Ti amo”, “Je t’aime”, “I love you” … most couples say the magic three words to each other after about five months. Even romance films almost never do without the magic three words (or do you know one?).
In everyday life, however, we often hear formulations that describe what the other person feels in a much more concrete way. No hackneyed love sayings, but authentic proof of love! And if you think about it carefully, these are worth even more than the typical “I love you”.
Because even if you don’t hear “I love you” all the time, you can definitely feel loved. Through deeds, gestures – and sentences that consist of other words, but are still great tokens of love.
1. You are my number 1
Job, mother, father, sister, friends, yoga, football… Everyone needs more than just the relationship. However, it should not result in the:die Partner:in running alongside “also running”. “You are the most important!” is therefore an elementary sentence for love. And one of the most beautiful tokens of love.
2. I want you just the way you are
You can only talk to each other perfectly when you first fall in love. Then it turns out that he or she is sometimes vulnerable, embarrassing or different than you would like. Anyone who can then say “I want you the way you are” proves that he is concerned with the person and not just with fulfilling his own wishes.
3. I trust you
Only when we trust the other person can we open up. The phrase “I trust you” shows that we are ready to scrap the nuclear security system around our heart. It takes more courage than saying “I love you”.
4. I forgive you
In love we will always hurt each other, writes couple therapist Oskar Holzberg in his columns. Those who can forgive give themselves and others new opportunities. A real token of love.
5. I respect you
Oddly enough, many people respect everything and everyone around them, but behave in a derogatory manner towards their partner. Just why? Anyone who can say “I respect you” and lives it does it better than many others.
6. I protect you
Even if we can actually protect ourselves quite well – this sentence triggers a sense of security. That can be a nicer feeling than a blanket “I love you”.