Relationships. They're a source of endless joy and angst. We might be deliriously happy for a while, but then the gloss wears off and we're stuck with reality. Most people get into relationships expecting they'll feel better about themselves and their lives when they have someone to love them. We will meet the man or woman of our dreams and they will fulfil us, be our everything and we'll both be deliriously happy for ever.
When that's not the case, what do we do? Often, we blame the other person. The thinking might go like this: I don't feel fantastic anymore, so it must be the other person's fault: they're not good enough, good-looking enough, rich enough, smart enough. A solution? Move on. The next relationship will bring all the things I need. And many people chase the high that new "love" brings.
Another solution might be to stay in that relationship because, very conveniently, we now have someone else to blame for everything we don't like about our lives. If it wasn't for them and all their flaws, our life would be wonderful. Love promised a perfect life, but I still don't have enough money and have no friends. Life didn't deliver. It's all their fault. How convenient not to have to look at our own stuff and stuff-ups. Those arguing, bickering, bitter couples are all locked into the blame game. Are we too afraid to say "What's my part in this? Why do I feel so unhappy? What can I do to change this?"
Being in a relationship that works means asking all those questions of yourself and then doing something about them. A something that doesn't involve running away, getting divorced and making all the same mistakes in your next relationship. In short: Own your own crap. If something annoys you in your relationship, look at your part in it. Then look at why it annoys you. It's your responsibility. It's so easy to blame everyone else for everything. I know, I spent most of my life doing it.
My husband called me on it early on in our relationship. I hated him for it at the time, because it meant I really had to look at why I always played the victim. Sometimes I want to be weak and helpless and have someone else to blame for everything that's wrong in my life. But if that's true, where does it leave me? What can I learn or improve from that position of helplessness? Playing the victim may feel easy at the time, but it's a cop-out. In the long term, it kept me stuck and miserable.
Now when I feel bad and I want to blame him, I have the tools to turn it around, knowing and really understanding that I am responsible for my own misery and my own happiness. I take him out of the equation and own my own crap. He can't do anything about my crap and I can't do anything about his, but to the best of our ability we don't dump it on each other. That, my friend, is the one big not-so-secret secret of a happy relationship. Own your own crap. And do something about it so you don't feel crappy.
There is one proviso: If he or she ever physical assaults you, even a "small" hit, that is not your crap. That is not your fault. That is definitely their crap. And grounds for divorce.
Get your free copy of Mary-Lou's Seven Tips For Your Best Relationship Ever
from Healthy Living - The Huffington Post http://ift.tt/1CQ0HQr
via IFTTT
When that's not the case, what do we do? Often, we blame the other person. The thinking might go like this: I don't feel fantastic anymore, so it must be the other person's fault: they're not good enough, good-looking enough, rich enough, smart enough. A solution? Move on. The next relationship will bring all the things I need. And many people chase the high that new "love" brings.
Another solution might be to stay in that relationship because, very conveniently, we now have someone else to blame for everything we don't like about our lives. If it wasn't for them and all their flaws, our life would be wonderful. Love promised a perfect life, but I still don't have enough money and have no friends. Life didn't deliver. It's all their fault. How convenient not to have to look at our own stuff and stuff-ups. Those arguing, bickering, bitter couples are all locked into the blame game. Are we too afraid to say "What's my part in this? Why do I feel so unhappy? What can I do to change this?"
Being in a relationship that works means asking all those questions of yourself and then doing something about them. A something that doesn't involve running away, getting divorced and making all the same mistakes in your next relationship. In short: Own your own crap. If something annoys you in your relationship, look at your part in it. Then look at why it annoys you. It's your responsibility. It's so easy to blame everyone else for everything. I know, I spent most of my life doing it.
My husband called me on it early on in our relationship. I hated him for it at the time, because it meant I really had to look at why I always played the victim. Sometimes I want to be weak and helpless and have someone else to blame for everything that's wrong in my life. But if that's true, where does it leave me? What can I learn or improve from that position of helplessness? Playing the victim may feel easy at the time, but it's a cop-out. In the long term, it kept me stuck and miserable.
Now when I feel bad and I want to blame him, I have the tools to turn it around, knowing and really understanding that I am responsible for my own misery and my own happiness. I take him out of the equation and own my own crap. He can't do anything about my crap and I can't do anything about his, but to the best of our ability we don't dump it on each other. That, my friend, is the one big not-so-secret secret of a happy relationship. Own your own crap. And do something about it so you don't feel crappy.
There is one proviso: If he or she ever physical assaults you, even a "small" hit, that is not your crap. That is not your fault. That is definitely their crap. And grounds for divorce.
Get your free copy of Mary-Lou's Seven Tips For Your Best Relationship Ever
from Healthy Living - The Huffington Post http://ift.tt/1CQ0HQr
via IFTTT
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