Ten Ways to Increase Intimacy

By Ebony Smith

 

Intimacy is more than just sexual intercourse. Wikipedia (2006) defines emotional intimacy as two people sharing their emotions and feelings to understand and support one another. Listed below are ten suggestions to increase emotional intimacy. Talk with your partner to see if you can come up with other ways to create more intimacy in your relationship.

 

Set aside time each day to sit down with your partner with no distractions and share how each person’s day was.

 

When talking with your partner, maintain eye contact and give them your full attention.

 

Set aside one night a week for a couple-only night.

 

Find creative ways to make your partner happy and surprise them at least once a week.

 

Make time for regular pillow talk with your partner to share your deepest thoughts and feelings with your partner.

 

Remind your partner how much you love them and appreciate them being a part of your life.

 

Make laughter a part of your daily life.

 

In discussions, take time to listen and understand your partner’s point of view before you respond with your thoughts and feelings.

 

If tension and emotions get too high during an argument, take about 15-20 minutes to cool down before you come back together to settle the dispute.

 

Make sure that you two spend quality time together doing things you both like.

 

Reference:

 

Emotional Intimacy. (n.d.) Retrieved November 6, 2006, from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia web site: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emotional_intimacy