All relationships have their rough times no matter how long you’ve been together. This includes the occasional argument. But that doesn’t mean you aren’t meant to be together. Clashing is a natural part of any relationship. A common cause of arguments or clashing is miscommunication. Knowing how to build communication in your relationship can help you build a strong connection.

Before you can start building communication in your relationship you have to realize that you and your partner are not the same people. This means that you won’t understand things the same or communicate the same. Here is where misunderstanding occurs which can lead to fights and arguments. Next, you will need to identify the miscommunication traits in your relationship. Key things to look out for are passive-aggressive behavior, using aggressive speech, and avoiding topics. With passive-aggressive behavior, all you are doing is expressing frustration instead of your feelings. Aggressive speech only allows you to be defensive which means you aren’t listening to the other person. By avoiding topics or situations you are only giving an issue more time to build.

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Building communication in your relationship won’t be easy but there are a few things you can do. When you find yourself frustrated, take some time to process your feelings instead of lashing out. This will give you some time to get your thoughts together and then speak to your partner. When speaking to your partner, remember that you both need to speak and be heard. This is crucial to building communication. In a heated argument, there isn’t a resolution at the end. This is where goal setting comes in. Before sitting down getting into the topic, try writing down a few goals you would like to achieve at the end of the conversation. These tips aren’t set in gold, all relationships are different but they can help you start the base of your communications.