Many of us women get stuck in relationships that we want to break free from. You may even be guilty of this right now and are not even aware of it. The only way to know for sure is to go through this list of 14 of the biggest reasons and see if you recognize any of the red flags. Breaking up is not always easy to do, but it is so much better than throwing away perfectly good years on your life with a person who is not so good for you.
1. You’re Used to Bad Relationships
Women who have a string of bad relationships can get stuck in a cycle of repeating the same mistakes. A good relationship may take work, but it is not supposed to be painful. The old saying, you can’t live with or without them, can become a reality, but healthy love is not supposed to feel that way.
2. Dependency
No matter how bad a relationship may be there is always something that holds you to it. It could be that you are dependent on that person’s opinions, emotional support, money, or even their negativity.
3. Guilt
Sometimes we just fall out of love with our partner, and yet recognize that they are still a great catch. It is perfectly normal not to love someone who you think you should. Chemistry is a very complex system, and my best advice is to follow it. If your heart and brain seem to be saying no, then the answer must be ‘no’.
4. Comfort
Being in any relationship can provide some amount of comfort, security, and the feeling of safety. These are very strong emotions that most all women crave, so you may find yourself staying just to take advantage of this.
5. Love Vs. In Love
To love and be ‘in love’ are two different feelings, yet it is still difficult to tell someone you ‘love’ that you aren’t ‘in love’ anymore. Your partner deserves to be loved just as much as you do, so if you aren’t all the way in, then you need to step out to give someone else a chance.
6. You’re Settling
At some point, some women begin to wonder if they are being too picky. Perhaps the relationship they have right now is as good as it will ever be, and so they settle. And this is a possibility because some women really are ‘too picky’ and end up regretting giving up on someone. However, make sure you’re really willing to settle for what you’re getting, as living the single life can be perfectly satisfying for a lot of women.
7. You Won’t Give up
A lot of success stories come from people who have that ‘never give up’ attitude. And as great as this can be for career and business, there are times when there really are too many odds against you and you need to give up in order to move forward again.
8. You Give up
On the opposite end of ‘not giving up,’ is giving up on your determination to find the right man and make it work. This is a little like settling, but is actually much more drastic. You are not just accepting things as being as good as they will get, you are giving up on your goals, your dreams, your faith, and ultimately yourself. The fact that you feel you no longer have control over your own life and happiness says that there is something very wrong with your relationship. Don’t give up… get help – from your friends, family, or anyone else who’s willing to listen and support you.
9. Believe There’s Still Work to be Done
There may be things you still have not tried to save your relationship, and these may very well work unless your partner is the one who’s not trying. As long as you both believe that there is something worth fighting for and you are both working to achieve it, that is great. But if you are left hoping that your partner will one day start to try harder, then consider this your reality check that you may not be important enough for your partner to take that next step.
10. Afraid to be Alone
It can be scary to cut off all ties with someone who gave you purpose, support, and the comfort of ‘being in a couple’. You may think that you can stay in the relationship until someone better comes along, but that rarely happens. Sometimes you just have to leap… and build your wings on the way down.
11. Not Good Enough
You may feel like you want something better, but you don’t feel like you deserve it, so you stay where you are. You are one of the most beautiful and interesting persons you will ever have the pleasure to know… and so you should treat yourself as such. Because if you don’t believe you are good enough – how can you expect anyone else to believe and act on it.
12. Don’t Want to have The Talk
The dreaded talk can be so devastating to both parties, many people choose to just stop talking to their partner in hopes that they will ‘get the message’. A text message breakup is only slightly better in this case, but many people need to have some kind of a closure, which means they’ll hang on for dear life, even though there is nothing left to hold onto.
13. Everyone Else’s Happiness
It is an awesome feeling to have a partner that everyone loves, including your friends and family. But it can become not so awesome when you no longer love that partner, and you seem to be the only one.
14. In Too Deep
You have invested five years of your life, both own the house, dog, picket fence, and possibly even a child together. The deeper one becomes embedded in a relationship the more difficult the steps may seem to get out of it. However, you shouldn’t really consider a relationship an ‘investment,’ as it is more of a learning adventure. Each relationship is filled with so many lessons and experiences that you will always keep with you, so it is not really about what you’re leaving behind, but what you have to look forward to.