Why Prioritising Your Relationships This Year Matters: The Case For Connection
The New Year often brings a desire for fresh starts - and after the intensity of the festive period, many people are reassessing what matters most. If you're thinking about your relationships with yourself, your partner or your family this month, you're not alone. Discover why connection deserves your attention, not just in January, but all year round and how to prioritise relationships in your busy life.
The power of connection
At the heart of our work is a simple yet powerful belief: connection matters. The quality of our connections with others shapes how we feel about ourselves, how we cope with stress, and how we feel and behave day to day.
How relationships affect our wellbeing
Relationships are central to emotional, physical and social wellbeing. The Mental Health Foundation has reported that people who are more socially connected to family, friends or their community are happier, physically healthier, live longer, and experience fewer mental health problems than those who are less connected.
Strong relationships reduce loneliness and isolation, while ongoing conflict or disconnection can increase stress and distress. Research suggests that the quality of our relationships is as important to physical health as not smoking, and may be even more significant than diet or exercise. (Harvard)
How family relationships affect children's wellbeing
Family relationships play a crucial role in children’s development. Persistent, unresolved conflict between parents can increase the risk of emotional, behavioural, social and academic difficulties. Research by the Early Intervention Foundation highlights strong scientific evidence that parental conflict affects children’s mental health and wellbeing, particularly where families are also under financial or economic pressure. (University of Sussex)
Supporting families with counselling to reduce conflict and communicate more effectively can make a meaningful difference to children’s life outcomes.
5 ways to prioritise connection this year
1. Get off your screens and make time for each other
The most powerful thing you can offer someone is your undivided attention. It’s not about grand gestures. Connection thrives in those small, consistent moments where you are truly available. Create a routine, such as a phone-free family dinner or a 10-minute morning coffee.
For couples, physical intimacy and sexual wellbeing are also vital pillars of connection that deserve dedicated time.
2. Practice repair after conflict
It’s not necessarily conflict that defines a relationship, but the recovery. Practising repair means being the first to reach back out after a disagreement. Ask your partner if you can have the conversation again to start afresh (“Can we talk about what happened?' or “I'd like to chat about that again.”) Teaching children that conflict can be resolved healthily is one of the most valuable skills they'll learn.
3. Ask better questions
Move beyond small talk that elicits one-word answers. Why not try to ask: "What's been on your mind lately?" or "What made you smile today?" And with children, try "What was the best and worst part of your day?" Try to listen without immediately problem-solving, as sometimes people just need to be heard.
4. Name the good
When life gets busy or stressful, it’s very easy to focus on the negative. Shift your focus to noticing what’s good with the relationship. Appreciating each other strengthens bonds and reminds you both why you connected in the first place.
5. Seek support when you need it
Relationship counselling is not just for crisis mode, but a tool for anyone who wants to communicate better, understand each other more deeply, or work through challenges. Speaking with a trained counsellor creates space to be heard, gain perspective, and develop skills for healthier, happier relationships.
Does relationship counselling work?
We know that relationship counselling works, and often in deeply impactful ways. While outcomes can be complex and personal, government research through the Reducing Parental Conflict Programme found that counselling interventions led to significant improvements in parental relationships, reduced psychological distress, and improved mental health and wellbeing for children.
These findings reflect what we hear from clients every day. As one client wrote:
“I cannot fully express the difference it has made to my life. I have gone from being broken to feeling like myself again.”
The Relationship Works experience
Our counselling, either online or in Bristol or Bath, helps individuals, couples and families step back from their situation and see it from a fresh perspective. Taking time out in this way can create space for reflection, insight and change. For many, the impact is genuinely life-changing: “You helped me more than you could ever know.”
Last year, Relationship Works (formerly Relate Avon) delivered 5,870 counselling sessions to individuals, couples and families. Clients frequently tell us that counselling helped them feel clearer, more supported and better able to cope with what they were facing.
Making the case for connection
The case for connection is clear. When people are supported in their close connections, individuals thrive, families become more stable, and communities grow stronger. Relationship counselling provides a safe, thoughtful space to be heard, understood and supported, and sometimes, that space can change everything.
Ready to prioritise your relationships this year? Book a confidential consultation.