Finding Purpose In Your Marital Relationship

Every marriage should have a reason for its existence, right? Otherwise, you would not be married at all because marriage is an optional state. It's not required.

Ideally, you had an idea of why you wanted to get married to your partner before the wedding day. But if you are already several months or years into your union and wondering why you are there, you may need to define the purpose of your marital relationship. But, again, don't look at this as a problem with the relationship; look at it as an opportunity for the relationship to grow and strengthen.

How to find purpose in your marital relationship

Finding purpose in your marital relationship can take two main forms. The first of these is rediscovering your purpose. The second is defining a new purpose for your marital relationship.

Rediscovering the purpose of your marital relationship is common in relationships still fairly young or in couples with some hardship. As mentioned above, you probably had a reason for marrying your partner in the first place. However, if you have been very busy or life has been more difficult than you expected, you can forget what that purpose was. There are few feelings more enjoyable than remembering what that reason was and discovering those emotions again. Some people can do this by just talking to their partner about their early relationship or going through photo albums. Others may try to revisit places where you once visited or do activities you once enjoyed, but this doesn't work for everyone.

Defining a new purpose can be necessary for people who have been married longer, who married younger, or who have been through other significant changes together. In these cases, you may have had reasons for getting married, but now those reasons may not seem to apply anymore due to the quick emergence of new considerations, and inquiries such as how has marriage changed over time seem uncommon nowadays. That doesn't mean that your marriage is necessarily over but to keep your marriage a priority, you should try to determine its purposes now that you and the relationship have changed or matured. It makes sense if you think about it: you're not the same person you were when you got married, and if the marriage isn't changing with you, what good is it? Just like rediscovering your purpose for your marital relationship can be very rewarding, deciding what it means to you in new stages of your life can be like falling in love all over again. Some couples can do this by discussing what they need from the relationship or how the relationship meets their needs, even if these cases have changed since the relationship began.

But, we keep talking about "reasons for a marital relationship." What does that even mean, and what might come of those reasons?

Reasons for being in a marital relationship

For many people, marriage is, at least in part, go into for love and companionship. It's something that you do because you want to be a part of your partner's life, and you want your partner to be part of yours.

However, marriage is also a legal union. When you get married, many aspects of your life become entwined -finances, taxation, parental responsibilities, insurance, schedules, and others. As a result, some people get married because they feel like they have to, whether for legal reasons like staying in the country, financial reasons like using the other's income, or societal or religious reasons like raising a child together.

You need to know whether the primary reasons for your marriage are found in love and companionship, other benefits, or some combination of the two. Usually, it's the last one. 

There's also the sexual aspect of the marriage relationship. For many people, the idea of a sexless marriage sounds horrible, and to some, the idea of sex outside of marriage is morally incomprehensible. Others may have gone into marriage for non-romantic companionship and may not care about sex one way or another. And yet others may practice consensual non-monogamy in their marriages. There are many alternative ways to find satisfaction and purpose in a marital relationship.

Further, these ways often change as the relationship and its participants change. For example, many couples find that sex plays less of a role in their marriage as they get older. Some couples may look for new excitement by inviting others into their sex lives, and others may find that this kind of lifestyle only makes them appreciate being with their marital partner more.

Of course, sex isn't the only reason people get married. Another huge reason behind getting married is to create a stable family within which to raise children. And all those other reasons - emotional, legal, societal, and financial - affect the lives of the child or children that you and your partner may have together. That's why when you ask yourself “What is the point of marriage?” you need to think about all the different reasons and determine their priority in your relationship.

Here's another thing to think about: Your marriage is a partnership. That means that part of the purpose in your marital relationship is for both you and your spouse to reach your individual life goals. You are each other's support team.

Finding purpose in your marital relationship

Because the purpose of your marital relationship is to have a teammate who helps you in reaching your own goals, you need to know what your purpose is for your spouse to support you in that. And support for life goals is an important purpose for marriage to serve. Yes, other friends and family can also offer support as you reach for your goals, but your spouse is usually the person who is with you the most. 

Marriage should not take away your purpose. Seeking out your own goals and growing towards them is one of the best ways to keep your marriage healthy. Having individual goals that you can support each other creates a balanced relationship where you can continue to learn about the other throughout the long term. That means you should also be supportive of your partner's goals and endeavors. If there is an opposite to the problem of not knowing the purpose of a relationship between individuals, that opposite does not know what the purpose of individuals is outside of the relationship. It can be all too easy to forget that that person sleeping next to you is more than just your spouse; they are their complete person. This article uses terms like "spouse" and "partner" to include all different types of readers and relationships without falling down the grammatical rabbit hole that is pronoun structure. Still, if you can look at your partner as more than just your partner, your relationship can become much deeper and more nuanced.

Talking to your partner

 If you find that the meaning of marriage is lacking and your partner doesn't seem receptive to supporting you in your individual goals, or you're having difficulty supporting your spouse, tell them. This can be a difficult discussion to have. You may be afraid that you will hurt your partner's feelings by saying that you aren't sure about the purpose of the relationship. Many people also feel defensive, believing they have these problems because they are weak or foolish.

If you are worried about how your partner will take it, just move slowly and explain yourself. Tell them that you still love them and value the relationship but that you feel it could mean more to you and want to make it stronger.

If you are worried about what your partner will think of you, don't be. Your partner should be there to support you, especially if you are worried about the relationship. Further, most people go through this kind of phase at least once in their relationship. As we said above, relationships grow and change, and the people in them grow and change. Wanting to understand and define your marital relationship doesn't mean that you are doing something wrong or something wrong with your relationship.

What to do next

If you can't manage to bring up your concerns with your partner, or if you and your partner have talked about the purpose of your marital relationship and don't seem to be getting anywhere, it may be time to consider starting couples counseling to help get your relationship back on the right track.

Couples counseling is like therapy but for the whole relationship. Your couples counselor will try to understand your relationship and the problems that you are experiencing to help the two of you work out ways to fix those problems.

Some people don't want to go through couples counseling because they see it as a sign of weakness that they can't navigate their relationship. However, if this article has been about anything, it has been that relationships are bigger than just two people. There are many moving parts in a relationship, which means that there are many ways that they can go wrong or just not go as you may have expected.

To learn more about how you and your partner can undergo couples counseling with a certified and professional couples counselor from the comfort of your own home by being connected to one over the internet, click on the link above.

Counselor reviews

“Dr. Burklow literally saved our relationship. I was honestly ready to call it quits. We joined Regain approximately two months before our wedding: that was six months ago. Needless to say, we are now husband and wife. Since then, we learned tolerance and acceptance, not only of each other but of ourselves. We began feeling and behaving like teammates as opposed to opponents. Though we looked forward to our weekly Tuesday night video sessions we knew couples therapy was not meant to be long term. In a short amount of time, Dr. Burklow provided us with the necessary tools to deal with conflict and ensure a successful and healthy union. Thank you again Dr. Burklow!”

“With Cassandra’s help, we’ve been able to bring our relationship to a new, healthier, and much happier level, working through painful situations, growing as individuals and as a couple, and with tools to stay on this path. She’s very responsive, and it has been great to have her facilitate our messaging through the app all week. I highly recommend Cassandra. She’s skilled, supportive, and down-to-earth. We feel totally comfortable with her.”