Malobi (31) and Tunde (28) met in 2017 and have been together since. In this week’s Love Life, they talk about bonding over shared interests but struggling to stay exclusive after seven years of dating, five years of cohabiting and having a child together.

Lase and Doris (both 30) met in Canada shortly post-japa in 2022. On this week’s Love Life, they talk about starting off as housemates in a small apartment, helping each other through extreme loneliness and how navigating celibacy together transitioned into a relationship.

John (67) met Funmi (59) when she was an undergraduate in 1986. John is a Catholic Christian and Funmi is a devout Muslim. On this week’s Love Life, they share how they were casual about their religions before marriage. Ten years later, they became more religious but have still had no issues staying in love.

Steven* and Ore* (both 37) have been married since 2015. On this week’s Love Life, they share why their talking stage lasted for two years, how they stayed celibate during their three-month relationship and almost divorced after a year because of her significantly higher sex drive.

Tobi* (28) and Tare* (29) met in 2022 and started dating the next day. In this week’s Love Life, they talk about navigating his “hustling musician” lifestyle, keeping their relationship private and ignoring the many people who assume he’s playing her.

Daniel (30) and Samaaru (28) have been friends since 2011, long before they ever dated or got engaged. In this week’s Love Life, they talk about finding out they liked each other on their first date after ten years of friendship and how the stigma around his disorder is harder to manage than his actual crises.

Ebiye* (24) and Toun* (21) have been together since 200 level in 2021, but their relationship gives “friends with benefits” a new meaning. On this week’s Love Life, they share how like turned to lust instead of love, how sex keeps them from depression, and why her mum got her birth control implants.

When Yemi* (41) and Joy* (43) started dating in 2015, they had no idea the other person was queer until they became best friends. On this week’s Love Life, they share how their relationship survived the discovery, why they decided to marry anyway and how they figured out the “having kids” part of being married.

We’ve written 142 Love Life stories since 2020, and that probably makes us experts at this love thing. This week, we break down 30 actionable tips from our most “versatile” 2023 stories to help you find love before Valentine’s Day.

We rounded up our 10 most unforgettable Love Life stories of 2023, guaranteed to give you hope of finding love come 2024.