Is It Ever A Good Idea To Go A Day Without Talking To Your Partner In A Relationship?
Part of being in a successful and fulfilling relationship is keeping an eye out for encouraging green flags that will show you that you're in a healthy and compatible partnership. On the other hand, you may also want to be wary of potential red flags that may indicate a bump in the road ahead. Frankly, you might start to worry that a problem is stirring if you notice changes in behavior, such as a seeming lack of communication.
"Communication is what keeps couples on the same page and feeling like they are solving problems together rather than against one another," Sarah Epstein, a licensed marriage and family therapist in Philadelphia and Dallas, explained to Forbes. She added, "Healthy communication helps couples de-escalate a situation, stay calm under stress, use humor appropriately, apologize effectively, and make partners feel heard and understood — even during very stressful moments."
While communication is obviously important when it comes to having a strong relationship, that might leave you wondering if something is seriously wrong between you and your significant other if you tend to take breaks from speaking. Beyond that, you might also be curious to find out if going a day without talking to your partner is actually a good idea or if it might be doing unnecessary and irreversible harm.
Don't worry if you don't talk to your partner every day
Being concerned about the status of your relationship is totally understandable if you happen to care deeply for the person that you're with. Do you know what else is totally understandable? Being incredibly busy. Many of us lead full lives that include work, errands, chores, hobbies, and social commitments, just to mention a few things that might take up your time. The same can likely be said for the people in your life, including your partner. Indeed, our day-to-day commitments can often keep us from doing other things that we might otherwise do, such as talking at length — or at all — to a loved one, according to Sort Out Relationship. That's why going a day without speaking isn't necessarily a sign that there's a problem.
In fact, Sort Out Relationships notes that how often you speak to your significant other isn't an indication of how much you care for each other. It's also not a reason to feel insecure about your relationship or your partner.
On the other hand, if you go multiple days without speaking to your partner or they regularly freeze you out by refusing to talk to you, then you might be dealing with more than just having busy schedules. You may be facing the silent treatment, which can either be simple to deal with or a sign of a very serious issue that shouldn't be ignored.
How to handle the silent treatment
If your partner flat out refuses to speak often or for an extended period of time, then they may be giving you the silent treatment. It may also be something that they tend to do whenever they're upset, annoyed, or overwhelmed, per Healthline. Usually, a person will be able to get over whatever might be bothering them or be willing to work on the problem. If they instead opt to use the silent treatment, then there may be a bigger problem in the relationship.
In fact, Healthline explains that using the silent treatment can be abusive behavior if one partner uses it as a tactic to control a situation or control their significant other. They might also do it to push you away. If you suspect that your partner might be using the silent treatment as a form of manipulation, then it might be time to end the relationship.
However, if your partner merely uses the silent treatment as a way to deal with their feelings or is willing to embrace a more productive way to process their emotions, then you might be able to work on the behavior together. You can also choose to express your own feelings about what's going on and the lack of communication. At the same time, if your partner just needs a little time and space to themselves and it doesn't bother you, then you might just want to give them the silence that they need.