Trust-Building Exercises for Couples

By: Chelsea Fitzgerald

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Trust is one of the most important attributes in a loving relationship. Good relationships thrive upon the foundation of trust. If you have a spouse or significant other who has destroyed your trust in him, it probably seems easiest to give up on the relationship. It is vital to remember that we are all human and will make mistakes from time to time. The person who breached the trust in the relationship must understand the emotions and feelings of the betrayed person in order to rebuild trust, according to the article, “Rebuilding Trust,” by Timothy Cole, PhD on the Relationship Repair website.

Minefield

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Scatter objects throughout the floor of a room or go outside and place several obstacles on the ground. Blindfold your partner and position her on the opposite side of the imaginary minefield. Guide her safely to the other side by only using your voice. Keeping your voice calm and instructing your partner about any obstacles well before she reaches it is key to this exercise. Do not allow your partner to stumble or fall because you were not thorough enough in your instructions. You can trade places after the exercise is over, having her re-position the obstacles and guiding you through them.

Running Free

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It is not common for adults to run unless they are an avid jogger or participate in organized sports. It simply does not feel normal to them to just take off running. This exercise involves blindfolding one partner. The other partner then takes the blindfolded person’s hand and guides them into a slow walk, according to the Wilderdom website. Once the person is walking efficiently, the other person encourages him to start jogging slowly and then eventually to run as fast as he can, totally trusting the person who is leading him. This is quite difficult to do and it may take several tries or days to build up the amount of trust necessary to complete this task. The person in the lead must at all times be ready to catch the other if he starts to stumble or fall. The blindfolded person trusts you to warn him of any rocks, sloping areas or holes in the ground. Walking blindfolded is difficult and it requires a small amount of trust, but speeding up to a full run is quite nerve-racking for the blindfolded person. .

Falling Backwards

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Have your partner stand about a foot in front of you. Instruct her to avoid bending her knees and to just fall back into your arms. Tell her not to look behind her or to throw her hands out backward to catch herself while she is falling. This is hard to do even if you trust the catcher fully. Gradually increase the distance between you so that she can learn to trust that you will always catch her when she falls. Trade places and allow her to be the catcher.