“Honey, you are beautiful even when you have curlers in your hair,” my husband says. My brain wants to say, “No way,” but my whole body softens to this compliment, and I feel good all over. People who’ve stayed happily married for decades often notice how things like compliments can be in short supply. Yet, research has shown how compliments boost self-esteem and foster security in a marriage. This is one way the past can affect our relationships, like my husband, who was micro-managed by his mom and resented it. So, I make sure he decides where we go and what we do at least half the time. My relationship with the love of my life is a wonder in how we can change within ourselves. This allows us to heal the hurt or neglected parts of us from relationships earlier in our lives. People who’ve stayed happily married for decades often notice these 3 changes in themselves: 1. They notice that healthy love changes how they respond emotionally Discoveries about how the brain first …