Relationships need nurturing with healthy habits. If you don’t work on setting boundaries and improving communication, you may be creating a toxic environment. Here are five practices that are hazardous to your relationship.
1. You run away from problems.
When you and your partner argue about something, do you run away and avoid uncomfortable situations, or do you stay and talk things out? If the argument is heated and tempers are flaring, stepping away to calm down is smart. However, you will have to discuss these disagreements because that’s how you keep a relationship healthy and strong. Running away from problems and never figuring out how to handle them is hazardous to your relationship. You cannot have a healthy union if you ignore things and move on as if they never happened.
2. You try to make your partner jealous.
Trying to make your partner jealous is an immature tactic that has no place in a healthy relationship. When you’re with someone, you should be secure about what you have to offer. It would help if you also were confident that your partner is with you because they want to be. If you feel taken for granted, the solution is not to make your partner jealous by showing them how desirable you are to others. This is an issue you should discuss and figure out how to handle it together. Making your partner jealous to get a reaction is not how you should behave in a mature relationship.
3. You break up regularly.
When you have an issue in your relationship or don’t like something your partner does, do you call it quits, but get back together soon after? That sort of behavior will not benefit your relationship. It would help if you were not flip about a break-up, nor should you threaten it. Only bring up if you mean it and are willing to lose your partner over it. You may get used to it over the months or years, but then be shocked when your partner holds you to it. If your partner is the one who has this bad habit, make it clear you won’t tolerate it anymore. If you want a healthy relationship, stop breaking up every week.
4. You give up who you are.
When you’re dating someone, you might want to learn more about the things they enjoy doing. There is nothing wrong with this unless you give up your own interests. To have a successful relationship, you don’t have to give up your life and cling to your partner’s. That can lead to an unhealthy relationship that you end up resenting because of your choice. Your partner may not want or expect you to be involved in every area of their life, and that’s okay. It’s important to have interests of your own as well as shared ones.
5. You name-call.
Name-calling is not only immature; it’s abusive as well. When you fight, no matter how bad it is, name-calling should not be tolerated. It should never be something that you get used to or think is acceptable for any reason. Name-calling can be hurtful and cause pain for a long time. If you have a habit of name-calling, it’s essential to break it immediately. It may seem reasonable to you because of what you might have seen in the media, your parents’ relationship, or your own relationships, but it’s time to break the cycle. If you are called names, make it clear you won’t tolerate it any longer.
Successful couples don’t avoid difficult situations. They figure them out together. If you’ve grown up with bad relationship habits, you can replace them with good ones to create a healthy relationship.
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