Recently, there has been a large focus on the concept of five love languages, and at this point, it’s very likely that you’re familiar with the idea of having at least heard of it. You may have even taken an online quiz or two to determine which ones you align with best! If you haven’t taken the quiz yet, here’s a link to a great one, as it provides quizzes specific to what stage of life, you’re in https://www.5lovelanguages.com/quizzes/ . So now that you’ve got your results, what do they really mean? Here’s a rundown of each one.
- Physical Touch
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Physical touch is just how it sounds, these people like to have physical contact with their partners. While it can be sexual, it doesn’t always have to be, as these people simply crave to be close to their partner. Ways to show that you love them come in the form of hugs, holding hands, cuddling, or even something as small as touching knees when you’re sitting next to each other.
- Words of Affirmation
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Pretty much as the name implies, people whose love language is words of affirmation like to be reassured and praised by their partner through the use of language. Good ways to show your partner that you love them is by giving them compliments, writing them a letter, staying in contact with them through text and social media, etc.
- Quality Time
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People with this love language want their partner to spend time with them. A good way to show people with this love language that you care about them is to be attentive when you’re with them. Things like making sure you make eye contact with them, not being on your phone while you’re together, and participating in engaging conversations are what make these people feel loved.
- Acts of Service
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Having a partner with the love language of acts of service may be daunting to some, but it’s easier than it sounds! The main point here is to help your partner do tasks, and even better if they don’t have to ask. Doing things like taking out the trash or walking the dog can be a huge relief for your partner, especially if they’re particularly busy or had a long day.
- Gifts
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This one might be the easiest one to accomplish. People who have this love language love to receive gifts. It doesn’t have to be anything big, or even cost any money, but having something physical makes them feel loved. If your partner has the love language of gifts, you could pick them flowers, buy them their favorite drink, or anything that reminds you of them or your relationship.
While my description above mainly discussed romantic relationships, these languages are important to recognize for anyone that you care about, whether that be your friend or even your parents. There are a couple of important things to recognize about love languages and the first being that they don’t really change over time. There are even theories that speculate that your love language has to do with how you were raised and shown love as a child.
The most important thing to understand about love languages is that we often give love in the way we wish to receive it. While this isn’t a bad thing, it can cause problems in a relationship if we don’t know our partner’s love language. Say your top love language is acts of service, and your partners are words of affirmation. To show them that you love them, you may do little things to make their life easier like cooking dinner or planning a date, but they don’t seem to appreciate it and it frustrates you. Understandably so! But your partner is also frustrated because they feel like you don’t compliment them enough, even though they’re dishing out compliments to you daily, which are nice, but don’t make you feel as loved as other acts! Having an open conversation with your partner and understanding what type of love languages you each have so you can both receive love the way you want, can resolve these types of problems.