Relationships are hard and it takes a lot of effort to maintain one. Couples put in their heart and soul in maintaining relationships and sometimes it becomes hard to stay in a difficult relationship. If the relationship is draining you, changing you and you have no mental peace in it, then you know that it is no longer the best for you. It is a depressing relationship and you need to leave it behind. You need to move on from a difficult relationship and try to find ways to recover and heal from the mental and emotional scars.
When people start out in a new relationship, they expect it to bring fulfillment and happiness. It may become so important that it takes the central place in one’s life. Very few imagine that a relationship can lead to stress and sadness. That it can be an upsetting and isolating experience. Couples may suffer from incompatibility issues, there may be pressure on the relationship due to children or finances or perhaps the couple may lose that “spark” and they do nothing to rekindle it.
Depressing relationships can take a toll on the mental health of the couple or one party. The signs of such a relationship are:
- One or both partners feel depressed
- The physical health of one or both partners may have declined
- You are trying not to think of the relationship
- Your self-esteem is lowered and you feel stressed
- You feel relieved when your partner isn’t around
A depressing relationship can be caused by events like a cheating partner, unhappiness at his/her actions, no time for romance, no appreciation or being abused by the partner. It may also be simply that the couple has drifted apart, don’t feel close with each other and cannot make each other happy anymore. So how to move on from toxic relationships? Read the tips to understand more.
Moving on from a sad and unhappy relationship can help overcome stress from relationships. Read the following tips to figure out how you can move on from a depressing relationship or understand how to move on from a cheating partner.
- Give time: Give time to yourself to mourn the end of a relationship and the complicated emotions involved. Take some time to reflect on things and accept that things ended for the best.
- Let your emotions flow: Whether you want to cry or scream, let it out. Keeping emotions pent up inside will only make you sad in the long run. Let it all out. It’s perfectly alright to feel crappy.
- Remember why the relationship didn’t work: When there is a break-up, one may often just remember the good things in it. And this why for the first few months, you will feel like going back into it. But this would be wrong. Remember why the relationship is over and know that you don’t regret your decision to walk.
- Avoid self-destruction: Drinking, doing drugs or smoking a lot just because you feel unhappy or angry isn’t the solution. Do not indulge in self-loathing or self-harm. Avoid destructive and negative behaviours.
- Don’t think negative: Right after a breakup, you are quite vulnerable. So, don’t go blaming yourself for all the wrongs. Don’t think about self-harm. Just remember that this too shall pass.
- Silence your internal critic: Don’t let the cruel inside voice criticise you or pity you. Don’t get caught up in the negative internal dialogue.
- Face the feelings: Don’t try to drown out your feelings. It’s ok to feel bad, angry and even miserable. Accept that the feelings are a path to healing and give yourself a break. However, you must learn to manage them.
- Be compassionate to yourself: Don’t be too hard on yourself. Practice self-compassion. Don’t ignore your pain, don’t judge yourself and be empathetic towards your own self. Make sure that you look after yourself well.
- Find a support system: Find a group of friend or family who will always cheer for you. Often, when we are down, this cheering team will be the one that picks us up.
- Learn to talk about it: The more you talk about an emotionally scarring event, the more you learn to accept it and live with it.