Whether you live with someone, are involved in a romantic relationship or are just friends, a healthy connection with another person can bring great happiness and meaning to life. Relationships help us feel supported and validated, which can boost our confidence and enable us to go after the things we want in life. They also teach us vital skills like communication, compromise and conflict resolution.

A relationship is any kind of interconnectedness between two or more people, including friendships, acquaintances, and romances. When used with reference to intimate partnerships, a relationship can also include physical intimacy or the sexual bond between partners.

There is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all definition of a healthy relationship, but there are some key qualities that most good relationships share. First and foremost, a relationship should be mutually beneficial. For most of us, this means that we give and receive equal amounts of affection, energy, love, and support. In addition, a healthy relationship should be balanced in terms of time spent together and time apart.

The word “relationship” is also often used to describe interactions between different groups of people, such as the relationship between the members of a community and the police force, or the relationship between an airline and its passengers. Similarly, many people define their family relationships in terms of their relations with other family members, or the relationship between a school and its alumni.

In the context of intimate relationships, a relationship is most often defined as a connection of passion and commitment between two people that can be either platonic or sexual. When a romantic relationship is mutually satisfying, it creates feelings of attraction and love that can make the world seem brighter and more beautiful.

The physical intimacy in a relationship can involve kissing, hugging, cuddling, and even sleeping together. For some, this can be sexual, but for others, it may not be. Even so, a physical connection is important to the health of most relationships. Intimacy is what distinguishes a romantic relationship from a friendship.

Emotional Growth: Emotionally supportive relationships encourage emotional growth and a better understanding of your own and other people’s emotions. They also provide a safe environment to practice and refine your conflict resolution skills. This can help you build a strong foundation of emotional intelligence, which can be applied to all aspects of your life.

Happiness: Having a partner with whom to share the ups and downs of life can be a tremendous source of happiness. It can ease loneliness and reduce depressive symptoms. It is common to experience some degree of depression, anxiety or stress in life, but being able to depend on a loved one can make the difficulties more bearable.

It is easy to lose sight of your individual identities in a committed relationship, but a healthy couple knows that they are each whole and complete individuals on their own, regardless of the relationship status. Attempting to change your partner in order to be happy with them is not only counterproductive but can destroy the very qualities that attracted you to them.