6 Benefits of Living with a Partner
If you’ve ever lived with someone, significant other or someone else, then you may already know some of the great benefits that can come from living together. If you’re like me and lived solo for your entire adult life, you may have some fears or be a little bit hesitant about moving in with your person. I am one of the biggest introverts out there. I love my alone time, and I love having my own space. Simply put, I love being alone. The exception, however, is my partner (aka my boyfriend).
Obviously if you’re having some fears or unsettling thoughts about taking the plunge and moving in together, it’s best to dive into those fears accordingly. It’s good to just be self-aware of what you’re feeling and why. What I have found in my experience, and in talking with friends about their experiences, is that a lot of the fear comes from the change. You’ve lived alone for some time, and you have grown to love it. Often times it’s not about being worried if the relationship or decision is right, it’s about mourning your solo life. Not single life, but the life and comfort you’ve built around living alone. It is truly like the end of a big chapter. For me, after 12 years, it was the end of an era.
There are also simple things on the surface like sharing your physical space, your food, your bathroom, and oh… the bed. All of this sounds a bit like an anxiety attack waiting to happen, but really, it isn’t as bad as you’re thinking. As I said, my boyfriend was the exception for me. Spending so much time with him and sharing my things and my space with him is easy because I enjoy him as a person. If I didn’t there’s no way I could live with him. We are best friends and are extremely comfortable with one another.
After spending so much time together during the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic, we were basically living together anyway. We were also doing long-distance before the pandemic. At the end of 2020 I was approved to work remotely, and then to relocate from Ohio to Georgia at the beginning of 2021. It just made sense for me to make the move. It didn’t come without the fears though. I loved my apartment in Columbus, Ohio. I am very close with my parents, and they also live in Ohio. I had been on my own for 12 years. I had all the fears and anxieties for sure. But I’m here to say that’s normal. Your life will change when you give that freedom of being on your own up, but that doesn’t mean it has to change in a bad way.
For me my fears evaporated when I traveled back home to Ohio for a visit and to start packing up my things. I was in my apartment that I loved so much, that will always be so near and dear to my heart, but it didn’t feel the same. I had the feeling of… “I have already lived this life. There’s nothing left for me here.” Not that there weren’t people I loved and cared for in Ohio anymore, but just that I was ready for something more. I had lived the solo life for so long and was happy and comfortable with it. I was perfectly good on my own, and I will always say and preach how important it is to live and be alone for a period in your life. That is how you get to know yourself and what you love. That is how you learn to love and take care of yourself. It is vital to spend time alone, to enjoy your own company, and to be in your own space and everything that comes along with that. I think it is an absolute must in life, and I am so thankful for that time that I had.
Then, when you do decide it’s time to live with someone special, it’ll be scary for sure, but you will be ready and whole. I put this list together of some of the things that I’ve loved about our transition from boyfriend and girlfriend to cohabitants and partners to help ease any fears or jitters you may have about moving in together.
Sharing Tasks
We all have household chores and daily tasks that we don’t always enjoy doing. The dishes, the laundry, cooking, cleaning, yardwork, etc. Living with a partner is awesome because you can share and/or take turns with all of these tasks. Sometimes I do the cooking in our house. Sometimes my boyfriend does. That is the case with most things, and it is honestly so great. There have been times when I really just dread putting away the dishes. It’s such a simple task, but it just annoys me. So, he’ll do it. Typically when one of us cooks, the other cleans up the dishes after too. These are just a few examples, but it is really nice having someone there to take some of the workload.
Splitting Bills
No brainer. I’ve never lived with anyone, and therefore the financial responsibility has always been mine. We weren’t sure how much money we would actually save when we moved in together because we were going from two apartments to one house (renting), but we are actually saving a little on rent and a lot on utilities. No need to explain how sharing the financial burden can help alleviate daily stressors.
More Productive
Since living together, my productivity has improved tremendously. Productivity in the sense of my personal goals as well as productivity for us. I think because I am taking care of our home and us that I am naturally more productive because it is benefiting my partner and our home also, not just me. It’s crazy how much I cook now. I never cooked this often when I lived by myself. We cook and eat regular meals five out of seven days a week I would say. It helps save us money and also has given me confidence in the kitchen that I never had before. Our house stays clean also because I want us to live in a clean space with good energy. When I lived alone I would clean and cook and such, but definitely not as often and I dreaded it. Now it’s just part of life. Personally, I spend a lot more time doing things for myself now than I did before. Which sounds crazy because I lived alone before, but living with my partner I just feel like I want to grow and be a better me. I dedicate more time to my creative projects than I did before. I think a lot of it comes from wanting to be better for each other so we are being better for ourselves also.
Accountability Partner
My boyfriend will call me out on my sh*t. That is for sure. If I’m overreacting, if it’s not that serious, he will let me know. As someone that struggles with anxiety, I really appreciate this and have grown so much as a person because of it. We also are each other’s biggest fans and having your biggest supporter next to you every day to keep pushing you to grow and expand your self - helps so much. We both recently started working out regularly, and he reminds me to be consistent and to keep going. Same thing with our personal and creative projects. We push each other to just do something as often as we can.
Having Someone to Decompress With
I don’t know about you, but for me, my day job can be very draining - physically and emotionally. At the end of the day, it is nice to be able to shut off my laptop, walk away from the stresses of work, and be with the person I feel most at peace with.
Building the Relationship
Before living together we thought we were partners, but now we know are. We have grown so much as individuals and living together has really pushed us to work together as a team. I think that we prioritize each other and ourselves more than we ever have. We live together yet still have alone time. We are no longer dealing with the struggles of a long-distance relationship, still get our “me-time”, and we get to go to sleep and wake up next to each other ever day. It is such a good balance. We are finding new ways to improve each and every day. We are on this ride through life together, as partners, and it truly feels that way.
In conclusion…
All of this to say - Sure, the decision to move in with someone is a big one, should not be taken lightly, and should be well-thought out. But if you do decide that it is ultimately what you want and have some pre-move jitters, I hope that this shows you how great it could turn out to be. You will never know until you try.
Sending love. Drop any questions below. Is there anything else you want to know or see in a post? Let me know :)
