There are things that can be worse than cheating, believe it or not, and it’s often things that we do that come from a negative or bad space. Cheating itself is an act that is outright wrong. But when you choose to be toxic or manipulative in your actions, this can at times be worse because you’re giving your partner/friends plenty of emotional stress and turmoil.
1. Lying and hiding things is not OK. If you feel the need to lie or hide anything from your partner or friends, you probably shouldn’t be doing it in the first place. Or you just need to suck it up and be upfront about it. There is nothing to be lost with honesty.
2. Holding back affection. After a fight, affection is the last thing on your mind and this is understandable. Give each other a little bit of space, and soon you’ll bounce back to each other. But holding out on affection simply because, isn’t a good thing. You need to be there for your partner when needed and if you’re absent, that casts a shadow of a doubt to your commitment which is no fun.
3. Resentment. Harboring any form of resentment is so detrimental to any relationship. Starts with small but over time it festers into a large and impending sign of bad things to come. Let go, forgive, and move forward. Resentment is a ticking bomb waiting to explode, don’t let it get the better of you.
4. Don’t bottle stuff up. Sometimes it helps to lay out a roadmap to help the other person figure you out. What upsets you? What hurt your feelings? Talk and express it and find a solution.
5. Not making compromises. This is a no-no in life. We all have our values and our position on things, but if you see value in a relationship, at times a compromise must be made. This is not to say that you lose your sense of self, of course not, but for the relationship to move forward, coming to a middle ground is key.
6. Don’t talk down to people. No matter how tempted you are, this is a really unattractive trait. Nobody likes to feel belittled and once you go down this path, you’re doing it to really hurt the other person. Nobody is perfect so remember this and be kind. Everyone is fighting a battle you know nothing about.
7. Jealousy. Sure we all get a little jealous at times, it’s only natural. But keep that in check. Don’t start imagining scenarios in your head or getting extra paranoid just because you’ve been cheated on before. If he has not given you any reason to disbelieve him, then just trust him.
8. Don’t ever manipulate. It’s ugly and causes more damage than good.
9. Not being yourself from the beginning. We all want to impress because after all, that’s how it works right? Who goes out on a date with the intention to make a bad impression? Our egos are far too consuming to allow that to happen. We have to appear as a catch and most often, just being ourselves is the key. But some people feel the need to take on a personality other than themselves in order to secure the guy. Don’t do this because it will show down the line. You want someone to like you for YOU.
10. Constant bickering over mundane things. It’s fine to fight and in some cases it is healthy because you are making progress as a couple. But if you’re constantly battling about petty mundane things, like, the dishes or cleaning up the house – then you really need to take five and assess the situation. Yes these things are important to living together, but really does this need to be picked on all the time? No.
Also Read: 7 Cheap and Affordable Fun Date Ideas (without Breaking the Bank)
– Cover Image: lifehack.org
