When was the last time you checked your phone? Five minutes ago? Fifteen? Did you see those messages from bae while you were venting to strangers on Twitter? (We know you saw. You have read receipts on.) Did you respond?
It can be easy to go radio-silent when you're riding the Instagram-hearts high (we get it), but—and this might come as a surprise—ignoring your partner's texts is actually driving them insane. (FYI, a no-context “hey” actually means “checking in for signs of life.”)
And it's not just your spouse: A 2018 study found that couples with similar texting habits had higher levels of relationship satisfaction than those with disparate messaging habits.
The good news? It's pretty easy to change your ways—the key is to get on the same page. Maybe you resolve to respond more often. (You might not have time to pen a midday sonnet to your spouse but "Hi" and "ILY" are easy to type.) Conversely, you can set up a no texting time (e.g., if you're at work) when it's understood that your spouse won't text you. If you're really unable to answer that text, you can copy and paste this prototype we lovingly made for you:
