real love

Myra Kirshenbaum, a psychotherapist, suggests this definition of real love:

Real love is how your partner makes you feel about yourself; about how your partner helps you love yourself. It is becoming true to yourself with your partner; how great you can become alongside your partner. It’s about you and your partner finding room in your lives for each other’s energy, drive, ambition, passions, interests, and needs. Real love is based on how much you actually experience your partner’s goodness as you live your life together. It is how much you feel “at home” when you are together; it is the life you really share, fully, equally, deeply. Real love truly brings us close, makes us feel good about ourselves and brings out the best in us. It is based on truly liking and respecting the other person. Love that’s not real can never be satisfying.