7 stages of emotional affairs to look out for
The number of emotional affairs which end in divorce is pretty depressing to be honest. That really does show you how difficult this type of situation is to overcome as a couple. So, what leads to that point? What are the key things to be aware of?
Stage 1 – They feel unappreciated or not good enough
Remember, emotional affairs aren’t always about the husband cheating. It can be either partner who strays down an emotional path to someone else. However, the first stage is usually the one where the partner feels somehow unappreciated in the relationship, or they feel like they’re not playing their part or providing as much as they should.
This inadequacy can cause problems to crop up and it can cause them toturn on their partner, perhaps with resentment starting to boil to the surface.
Stage 2 – The love had gone out of the relationship
Okay, so love isn’t the be all and end all, but it is an important way for a couple to stay connected. Of course, that doesn’t mean you need to drop everything and be available every time your partner wants love but you do need to make sure that as a couple you’re focusing on your love life too.
Stage 3 – You start to feel like best friends rather than romantic partners
It comes to the best of us at some point but it’s vital that you spot the signs and do something about it before problems arise. If your relationship has become boring, if you feel like brother and sister, brother and brother, sister and sister, best friends etc, then it’s important that you try and spice things up and reconnect.
Stage 4 – One partner is too busy for the other one
We need to make time for one another. If one partner feels like the other one doesn’t have time for them when they want to talk or they want to do something together, they’re going to become fed up pretty quickly.
Without a doubt, one of the strongest stages of emotional affairs is when a partner wants to talk, perhaps they’re going through a hard time, but they can’t find that support from their partner. They seek this support from another person, albeit completely innocently at first, but an emotional connection is formed.
Stage 5 – One partner is demanding too much of the other
We all go through stressful times in life and it can often lead us to shut off from our partners. If the other partner is complaining about it, making demands and not being understanding of what they might be going through, this can easily lead to a major rift between them.
Stage 6 – The guilt kicks in
When looking at the stages of emotional affairs, by this point it’s likely that the other partner has a suspicion that something isn’t quite right. This may lead them towards ultimatums or trying to keep their partner with offers of love or being clingy.
Stage 7 – Breaking point
The final stage is the point when either the partner breaks things off with the person they’ve been seeing and decides to dedicate themselves to their relationship, or they decide to leave completely. The problem is, at this stage, the damage has often been done and the road back is extremely long. Can you ever trust your partner again? Can they forgive themselves? You might both wonder whether the entire situation might repeat itself in the future.
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