"I love you": three words that mean so much, and are incredibly scary to so many. What does it take to say these words? Nothing if not a healthy relationship.

So what goes into a healthy, loving relationship? Everyone knows that there is no recipe for love; individuals are so unique that there is a huge variety of lovers as well. But there are some things which a long-term relationship cannot do without. Here are eight of them in no particular order:

1. You
An important part of any loving relationship is you. You need to be able to be your own person and to stay true to yourself. You also need to be over past relationships and able to deal with the present. If anyone in your life comes before your significant other, it should be one of the first things your partner knows about you. Your relationships with other people are critical as well; both you and your partner should have people to talk to outside of the relationship.

2. Be realistic
If you are not in a realistic relationship, forget about it going far. As a couple you should agree on core values and need to be aware of what you have planned for the future.

3. Sharing Secrets
In order to keep your relationship alive you need to be willing to share, everything. At some point, if you are in a relationship for good, any secret that you try to hide will surface. It’s only a matter of time. If you are ashamed of something, all the more reason to bring it up. There’s almost a guarantee that your partner will have a deep dark secret of their own that they have wanted to “fess up” to… and it’s a great way to get to know each other better. After all, love is blind, and your lover will look past any faults you have; they might even ϑthink that it’s cute.

4. Communication
This goes along with sharing secrets, but it is important that you are able to talk to your partner about anything. If they hurt your feelings in the way that they talk to you to their family or friends, they should know. You’re doing your significant other a favor by sharing your opinion.

5. Compromise
Once you have figured out the kinks in your relationship, it will go a lot smoother. This is because in a healthy relationship you will both need to make changes in your life. Whether it is moving across the country in order to stay together or spending time apart, a couple needs to figure out what makes them tick and then work on bringing both sides to a middle ground. As long as you are both open to the other's suggestions, and communicate, compromise should not be overly difficult.

6. Loyalty
You need to defend each other. Don’t let anyone mistreat your significant other, especially if they are not around. Having your partner stand up for you is one of the best things in a relationship. Hearing about it from someone else can be even sweeter.

7. Trust
This need not be elaborated. If you do not trust that your partner is doing all of the above, and if your partner does not trust you, then you need to work on building that trust. Communicating issues, sharing secrets, spend time being you (as a couple and as individuals). Trust takes time, and you need to be completely trustworthy in order to be able to fully trust in anyone.

8. Friendship
Ultimately, your significant other should become your closest friend.