Romance Survival 2021.
While it was commonly assumed that the stress of 24/7 pandemic togetherness would have a bad affect on romance, a recent Homes.com survey of over 1,000 “coupled” consumers reveals otherwise. It demonstrated that love not only survived the virus pandemic, but also soared to new heights. In fact, the vast majority of survey participants reported that spending so much time confined at home with their significant other has actually bolstered their bonds.
Not only have people changed their schedules to make more alone time (which we all need), but they’ve also made more time for family and friends (again, much needed). Eating more meals together, arranging TV or other date nights, and exercising together are the top routine changes for couples even those in long distance relationship, the had more time for calls and challenged themselves with thing like movie, music, books, cooking and so on.
The survey also found that:
- Nearly 10% of couples who lived apart before the pandemic moved in together over the last 11 months, with a roughly even split between dating and married twosomes. Eight out of 10 of the newly cohabiting partners reported the move has strengthened their relationship.
- 29% say the #1 pandemic-related strain on their relationship is the inability to spend time with friends and family, with the constraints on travel and entertainment running a close second (28%). Insufficient alone time (11%), the need to manage e-learning for children (10%), financial challenges (10%) and splitting household chores (5%) are also causing conflict.
- 9% have purchased or adopted a pet to take advantage of the extra time at home, and that isn’t limited to married couples living under the same roof. 19% of new dog and/or cat parents are dating exclusively, 6% are casually dating, and 7% decided to become pet owners after a pandemic breakup.
- 57% have adjusted their routines to carve out alone time that has been lost because of work-from-home policies and other virus restrictions. The top routine adjustments were exercising alone (17% of responses), dividing the days into “alone” and “together” time (17%), and having a dedicated space to work separately (17%). Other strategies included watching different TV shows (15%) and starting a new hobby (12%).
- 56% have also adjusted their routines to create more together time. The top routine adjustments for couples are eating more meals together (29%), scheduling TV or other date nights (16%), and regular exercise together (9%). Starting a new hobby together ranked at 8%, while doing volunteer activities together came in at 6%.
- 34% of couples have modified their homes to minimize relationship conflicts. The top changes among this group were the addition of a home office (41%), home gym (23%) and outdoor recreational space (22%). Also, 19% created a dedicated space for hobbies, and 11% partitioned a room to create separate spaces.
From the embedded video interview, i would say that the romantic world is still thriving strong.
