The best gift that parents can give their newborn babies is to be in a strong and loving relationship. However, two-thirds of couples report dissatisfaction in their relationship the first three-years after a baby is born The one-third of couples who continued to feel satisfied in their relationships after the arrival of a baby realized that the stress they encountered with the birth of a new baby was outside of the relationship. When conflicts inevitably did arise, they were better able to manage them. Here are some things to do and not to do in your relationship after having a baby.

With quarantine and social distancing, you and your partner are likely experiencing a lot of “togetherness”. Perhaps this has brought out the best in your relationship, but more likely you have suddenly noticed how loudly your partner chews their cereal in the morning. Most people are experiencing increased anxiety due to COVID-19 and if you are in a relationship, then you may be taking out this stress on your partner. While it is not always fair, it is easy to take out anger, stress, anxiety, or frustrations on the ones you love. Welcome to being in a relationship at the time of quarantine.

Instead of hearing about healthy relationships from the therapist in the family, I asked my husband, “B” his thoughts and feelings about relationships. And here he is what he had to say…