Dr. Anjali Chhabria, Mumbai-based Consultant Psychiatrist says, "Conflict and misunderstanding happens in any marriage. In the first year many couples tend to compare their relationship with that of others. 'Oh my God they are so in love; they coochi-coo so much; etc' and then start thinking that something is wrong with their relationship."

Although the first year of marriage may be tough, the fact that you've come this far together should make you want to turn your first couple year into a journey of intimacy and discovery. For that, you need to first "Make a commitment to romantic love," says author Willard F. Harley Jr. in his book Five Steps to Romantic Love: A Workbook for Readers of Love Busters and His Needs, Her Needs.

According to this book, love that implies 'care' is a behaviour that actually meets someone's needs. Romantic love, on the other hand, is a feeling we experience when someone meets our most important emotional needs. The two concepts of romantic love and care come together in marriage. You care for your spouse when you meet his or her most important emotional needs. That in turn causes your spouse to feel romantic love for you. When your spouse cares for you and meets your needs, you feel romantic love for your spouse.

When you build a strong foundation of care and emotional love in the first year, you set the stage for a life-long, meaningful marriage.

Also Read: 35 Intimate Questions for the Groom

That said here's a list of common conflicts in the first year:

Dealing with a Stranger Your Spouse

Some couples (mostly women) face mild depression immediately after the wedding. Many are also often shocked when they see the man they knew before marriage radically transformed into this phantom stranger.

Mona, a homemaker married Karan after three years of dating him. Mona assumed that because they had known each other for three years, life together would be a breeze. But the first year shook Mona's world because her romantic expectations came crashing around her shoulders.

She felt that Karan suddenly became complacent, unromantic and took her for granted-something he never used to do before. Karan's view was that as partners for life, they needed to get real.

Passionate declarations of undying love would have to take a back seat-to him life meant paying bills, running a home, planning a future. At first, Mona was surprised, hurt and resentful when she faced the unromantic aspects of marriage like home maintenance, household help, and food (trivial as they may seem).

But after a while she realised that Karan really did love her. He showed her that in other ways-by making sure she was okay and all her needs were met.

Also Read: Spending Time with Your Husband