According to the Google search experts at Moz, around 1,100 people search for the term ‘how often do couples have sex?’ every month and it’s understandable when you consider how much pressure there is on couples to always be their sexiest, best selves especially in a time when we’re talking about the innocuous things that give us the ick.
Now in a survey launched to launch the new ITVX drama Love & Death, 2,000 couples in relationships that have lasted 10 or more years have revealed what they believe are the secrets to a happy, lasting relationship.
The secrets to a long-lasting relationship
So, according to the survey which 2,000 couples took part in a survey to discuss their relationships and the contributors to keeping it strong and healthy.
So, first of all, the big one, how often are happy couples having sex? Of course, whatever works for you, your relationship, your energy levels etc is what matters more than anything else.. but the magic number appears to be seven times a month.
More important than sex, chores, compromise or even being able to forgive each other is quite adorably having fun together with 64% of respondents saying this was incredibly important to their relationship. Which makes sense, really. If you can’t have fun together throughout the highs and lows of a relationship, what’s the point?
42% also agree that never stopping saying I love you and being able to laugh at each other are essential.
Live, laugh, love, you could say.
Other couples had more... specific advice. Including the (only?!) 7% that said one of the secrets to their happy relationship was never going to the toilet in front of each other and 5% stating that sleeping in separate beds has been beneficial for them.
When it comes to the much more difficult topics like infidelity, a surprising amount of couples said that they could work through it with 85% saying they worked through the infidelity and 38% of those saying it actually made their relationship stronger.
A spokesperson for ITVX who commissioned the poll said “It’s fascinating to learn that almost half of all married couples in the UK are impacted by infidelity. Thankfully, the vast majority of British couples are able to resolve things amicably.”
We’re a soppy little nation, aren’t we?