Marriage Counsellor and Psychologist Shivani Misri Sadhoo

Once the dating phase is over and you’re ready to take the big step into marriage, your mind is bound to be filled with questions. From financial responsibilities to emotional compatibility, family expectations, and future planning, there’s so much to consider before saying, “I do.” Even if you’ve touched upon some of these topics, there are still important conversations to have—especially before you embark on your honeymoon.

The honeymoon isn’t just a time for travel and romance; it’s an opportunity to understand your partner in a new light truly. This phase sets the foundation for your married life, allowing you to observe each other’s habits, expectations, and emotional needs in a more intimate setting.

What are the key things couples need to discuss before their honeymoon?

Shivani Misri Sadhoo, Delhi’s top marriage counsellor, and couples therapist shares seven essential things that every couple should discuss before their honeymoon.

Money Matters

Setting a budget before heading on your honeymoon is a must. It helps you enjoy your trip without financial stress. Consider travel, accommodation, food, and activities while planning. Don’t forget extra costs like shopping for loved ones.

Unexpected expenses can come up, so keep a little extra aside. A well-planned budget ensures a smooth and memorable honeymoon without overspending or regrets later. Smart planning makes the trip more enjoyable.

Choose Your Destination Wisely

Choosing the right honeymoon destination is crucial for a memorable start to your journey together. You may dream of adventure—skydiving, scuba diving, or trekking—while she longs for a peaceful beach retreat, watching waves dance like fairies in a folktale.

If expectations don’t align, disappointment may follow. Sit down, discuss, and find a destination that excites both of you. A well-planned honeymoon ensures happiness, harmony, and cherished moments that last a lifetime.

Talk About The Menstrual Cycle

Talking about the menstrual cycle before your honeymoon is essential for a smooth and comfortable trip. It helps both partners set expectations and plan activities accordingly. Some women experience cramps, mood swings, or fatigue, which can affect their enjoyment. Knowing the cycle dates allows better scheduling and avoids unexpected stress.

If the honeymoon coincides with her period, discussing options like medication, rest, or adjusting plans ensures a stress-free experience. Open communication strengthens understanding, care, and intimacy in the relationship.

Birth Control

Another important topic to discuss before your honeymoon is birth control. Planning ahead can help prevent unwanted pregnancies, reducing physical, emotional, and financial stress. Sharing responsibility for birth control strengthens your relationship and ensures peace of mind. It’s important to talk about your options and decide what works best for both of you. Some methods take time to become effective, so early planning is key. After all, you want to focus on enjoying your honeymoon without worries.

Set Boundaries

When you set boundaries in a relationship, it is not about restricting each other but about creating a safe and respectful space. Both partners should decide together what is acceptable and what is not. Open discussions about privacy, intimacy, and social interactions help avoid misunderstandings.

This is especially important before a honeymoon, where clear expectations about personal space, finances, and activities prevent conflicts. Talking about comfort levels ensures a stress-free and enjoyable time together, strengthening the bond.

Likes and Dislikes

Do you want your honeymoon to be a dream come true rather than a stressful trip filled with disagreements? Understanding each other’s preferences, likes, and dislikes is the key. Before setting off, couples should openly discuss what they want to do, see, and eat.

This helps avoid misunderstandings and ensures both partners feel included. When both know what the other enjoys, they can plan activities that suit their interests, making the trip more fun, memorable, and fulfilling for both.

Shared Values

If you really want your honeymoon to be the start of a strong and lasting marriage, deep conversations about values are a must. You and your partner won’t agree on everything, and that’s okay. What matters is understanding each other’s perspectives and respecting differences. Shared values don’t mean identical opinions but rather a common understanding of what truly matters. This helps build trust, avoid unnecessary conflicts, and create a bond that can withstand life’s ups and downs.

A honeymoon is more than just a getaway—it’s the first step in your married journey. Open conversations about money, travel plans, health, boundaries, and values create a strong foundation for a happy marriage. When couples understand and respect each other’s needs, they build trust, deepen love, and create memories that last a lifetime.

Key Marriage & Relationship Tips by Counsellor Shivani Misri Sadhoo

Ask anyone if love in an arranged marriage is feasible, and the chances are high that you will hear them quip, that ‘love’ and ‘arranged’ are as distant as night and day. The typical wisdom of 21st century leans towards the argument that in order to have love in marriage you need to first fall in love. In spite of the high number of opinions though, it has been observed that arranged marriages have substantial success in India, despite the fact the many live with the perception it as a ‘forced marriage’. In spite of all, Indians still prefer getting hitched the good and old arranged way.

The question arises is if an arranged marriage really works, then how long it takes for the couple to fall in love? To be honest there are no fixed formulas. But there are few conditions and pre conditions that may help you to fall in love with lightning speed.

In this article today Delhi’s top marriage counselor and relationship expert Shivani Misri Sadhoo talks about how to fall in love in an arranged marriage.

You Had Arranged Dating

This is an IDEAL way of making sure that you are in love in an arranged marriage, with your to-be life partner, before you actually tie the knot. Arranged dating is normally the dates you go on during the phase that falls between your engagement and wedding or once your wedding is finalized. Because it is an arranged marriage, you have complete consent of your family members and therefore you can feel comfortable yet secure when on such dates. In case you are someone who is planning to tie the knot soon, you can request for an ‘engagement-wedding’ combo so that you get some time in between to know your partner well and maybe discuss post-marriage issues as well.

You Express Your Heart Out To Your Life Partner

You have no reluctance about sharing your shady past because you feel your partner has all the right to know it. At the same time, you are not about your other half for their back story, rather you allow things to go with the flow. This is a hallmark of a successful marriage, which is made of two individuals that trust (more about it later) and love each other. Be transparent, speak your heart out, share your thoughts, and you will realize you have developed enough love to make everyone around to believe you had a mushy love marriage.

You Share the Same Passion

This must be the ticket to love in an arranged marriage, and followed up matrimonial bliss since both of you are on the same page. If she is into bird watching and you remotely endorse it, then this is the time you cultivate that hobby as well so that you can hit a common note with her. Sharing and having the same passion is certainly going to bring you closer, eventually making you fall for each other? But it is not necessary always that you need to be compatible in terms of likes and dislikes.

Dedicate Time for Each Other’s Hobbies

Instead of putting up an act of how much you loathe some of your partner’s hobbies, take out time and effort in adopting them yourself. If he enjoys playing games on PlayStation, sit with him and ask him to tell you about the game controllers and teach you. You will just establish your place in his heart forever, girl! Even a slight display of approval to your partner’s hobbies is the best way to fall in love in an arranged marriage, while you are still figuring out each other.

You Give Each Other Independence

Definitely, it is great to do bird watching and gaming together, but no one requires a clingy life partner. In fact, the most loving relationships are those where the partners who give some ‘separate and away’ time to each other with respect and honour. Always bear in mind, that you are two individuals who have your very own social circles and obligations. Letting your partner have their ME time is the best way to make your love stronger. Your relationship will then be like the two ends of a rubber band, the farther they are stretched, the stronger they come back towards each other.

Trust and Mutual Respect Is At The Core Of Your Relationship

When you see each other from the corner of the eye just to keep a watch on each other? Now, this is a lack of trust and respect. Trust should be an element constituting the bond between both of you and trust itself must be backed by mutual respect if you want love in an arranged marriage. Arranged marriages are infamous for situations where the husband forcibly avails his ‘husband rights’, while the wife always has ‘who was she?’ question on the tip of her tongue. Make it a habit to never discount or downgrade your respect and trust for each other, which will eventually form the base of your mutual love.

Learn Things and Help Each Other

You provide a helping hand to your partner with zeal and promptness, and you will have your partner more than impressed; absolutely flattered maybe. It will also make your tag of being a truly loving life partner and not just someone is thrown into a sphere of matrimony because it was all arranged. Bring some love to your partner, and you will realize that you just brought a perception shift in the drab image of arranged marriage.

You Invest Good Time to Understand Each Other