The divorce rate in the United States has been steadily increasing over the past several decades. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that half of the marriages end in divorce. If you’re part of this statistic, it may seem hopeless to turn your marriage around, but following these five steps can strengthen your marriage and avoid divorce altogether. 5 Ways to Strengthen Your Marriage and Avoid Divorce.

1) Understand What Makes a Strong Relationship

A strong relationship is built on trust, communication, compromise, and respect. If you can work together as a team and be honest, you\’re off to a good start. However, every relationship will go through tough times at some point. How you handle these challenging times can make or break your relationship.

For example, if one partner wants children while another doesn\’t, they must find a way to compromise. The couple must discuss their options thoroughly until they are both happy with their decision. You also need a mutual understanding of your expectations for each other.

2) Accept Mistakes

No one is perfect, so accept that you both will make mistakes. What’s important is how you handle those mistakes. If you learn to forgive and move on, your marriage will be much stronger.

When you are upset with your spouse, it’s okay to take a time out or separate from them. Communicate: Tell them if something is bothering you about the way they do something or they do not do something! Communication solves many issues in relationships. 5 Ways to Strengthen Your Marriage and Avoid Divorce.

3) Be True To Yourself

Being true to yourself is one of the most important things you can do in your marriage. It\’s also one of the most difficult. You and your spouse are two separate people with two separate lives.

It\’s important to remember that, even though you\’re married, you\’re still two individuals. You need to be honest with each other about who you are and what you want out of life. If you\’re not honest, it\’ll eventually come out, and it\’ll cause problems in your marriage.

Read more: Divorce is Hard Enough – Don’t Let your Health Suffer, too.

4) Show Appreciation

We live in a world where we are constantly bombarded with images of what we should have. It’s easy to compare ourselves to others and think that our lives are lacking because we don’t have what they have. But when it comes to marriage, the comparison is the thief of joy.

Instead of comparing your marriage to others, focus on what you have and be grateful for it. You might not have that luxury car, but you do have your spouse. You might not take fancy vacations, but you do dinner together once a week. So show appreciation for the things that matter most and work on those! Make Time For One

5) Don’t Compare Yourself To Others

It’s easy to compare your relationship to others, especially when you see happy couples around you. But every relationship is different, and comparing yours to someone else’s will only make you feel worse. Instead of looking at other couples and wondering why your relationship isn’t like theirs, focus on the things that make your relationship special. Comparing yourself to others will only do more harm than good. You should focus on making your relationship as strong as possible instead of feeling bad about it.