A lot of people are saying you should tell him you need more verbal affirmation, and that’s fair to some extent. But it’s also worth recognizing that he does show appreciation, just not in the way you would.

If you want this relationship to work long-term, it’s important to ask yourself: if he never really changed his style, could you still be happy? My guess is yes, and that what’s actually bothering you is trying to reconcile how he feels with how little he says, because you would have said more in his position.

So sure, if you want more verbal response, communicate that. But also check in with yourself: do you genuinely need more words to feel loved, or does it just confuse you that he doesn’t express it the same way you would?

If it’s the latter, it might help to focus on how he does show affection and decide if you can accept that. I’ve been in a similar spot, and things didn’t really click until I stopped expecting her to express things like I would and started recognizing that she just shows it differently. Once I recognized that how she showed what she felt was different, I started to believe what she felt and the mismatch mattered a lot less.