If you’re about to move in with your significant other, you’re probably feeling both excited and nervous. Gone are the days when you get to brush your teeth before a good morning kiss, or hide your weird habits. You’re about to become roommates, and you’re taking your relationship to the next level. It can be incredibly romantic. It can also cause a lot of tension!
In order to keep your relationship going strong, we have a few tips for easing this transition. It’s not hard to ease the tension, but you do need to plan out some things in advance. Be ready for conflict, and be ready to work together on a solution.
Compromise on Bad Habits
You might do really weird things in the privacy of your own space, like leave your hair all over the shower walls. You might have a habit, like smoking, that drives your partner crazy. Now that you’re moving in together, it’s time to find a middle ground on these habits. You might trade one habit for the other: “I’ll let you keep doing that if I can do this…” Or you might find ways to tone it down. You can promise to stop leaving your hair in the shower, or commit to vaping e juice at home instead. Finding a middle ground is a first step in solving new-life conflicts.
Blend Your Styles
You have stuff. Your partner has stuff. You both have a unique style. They might be a minimalist. You might be a maximalist. Even if your partner doesn’t have strong feelings about decor, your new place should feel like a blend of both of you. Find ways to meld your art, furniture, and styles into a cohesive whole. You’re sharing a bed now, so check out custom comforters to find one you both love. You should both feel like you belong in the apartment, so make sure you’re both represented in the decor.
Get Organized
If suddenly sharing a bathroom sounds like a nightmare, it might be time to get organized: fast. Having a certain place for everything, and proper storage, will help keep your new, shared world stress-free. If everyone’s stuff has a place to go, it won’t wind up in “your space” and drive you crazy. Your new place has to be all about compromise, but it also has to be all about storage. If everything has a place to go, you’ll find you’re a lot less stressed about the small stuff.
Have Your Own Space
You might have gotten used to living in peace and quiet. Now there’s this other person around! You’re stuck with them, and overall, you’re pretty happy about that– but you still need your own space sometimes. Have a reading nook or a corner of the bedroom that’s all yours, where you can unwind and be “by yourself” even though your apartment is a shared space, now. Having a spot to call your own will help diffuse the tension and weirdness of blending lives. Together, you and your mate can work on making this work, and enjoy a future of fun togetherness. Enjoy!