Often times, we come across the term ‘toxic relationship‘. But, how many of us actually know what a toxic relationship really is? While these types of relationships can take many forms the basis of it tends to remain the same. It’s a relationship that is considered “unfavourable” to you or the other person. A toxic relationship has many effects on the people involved in them and most significantly, takes a toll on the mental well-being of a person. That aside, it does a lot more than just take a piece of you. Here are some more effects of a toxic relationship.
1. Deteriorating Self-Worth
One of the major things toxic relationships tend to do is lower a persons self-worth and self-esteem. They start to think less of themselves and also that they don’t deserve better than what they have. This, in turn, results in people losing confidence in themselves and their abilities. They tend to start going into a shell and begin to value themselves lesser and lesser as time goes on.
2. Normalisation
One of the worst parts about a toxic relationship is that it normalises abuse. Whether it’s physical or mental, abuse isn’t something that should ever be considered normal. Sadly, most people stuck in toxic relationships don’t realise just how much they’re putting themselves through and just how harmful these things are in the long run. In extreme cases, this normalisation also leads to people thinking this sort of abuse is something they deserve. They tend to hold on to this with the thought that eventually, the light at the end of the tunnel will shine.
3. Mental Trauma
A toxic relationship takes a huge toll on your mental health. From depression to suicide, toxic relationships have been known to push people to extremes. While at first it the actual effects won’t show, given enough time, it starts to take a toll on your mental health and eventually, physical health as well. There is a visible change in a person’s behaviour and even their habits. For some reason, a lot of people tend to take toxic relationships lightly. It often starts out slowly but before you know it, it can suck you into this pit of despair.
4. Hampers Personal Growth
A toxic relationship is like a dead end. It’s like an unbreakable wall that keeps you stuck in one place for the duration of it. It changes you in a way that prevents you from growing because it makes you comfortable with the chaos. It prevents you from looking beyond it and from looking at your future. It takes up so much of your time and energy that you’ve got none left for other, more productive things. You also start to lose interest in things you’d usually love doing and also makes you more distant from people.
5. Prevents You From Being Happy
At the end of the day, happiness is something we all want and deserve. A toxic relationship takes such a huge toll on you, that it becomes harder and harder for you to feel content with things or even happiness in general. Since you spend most of the time trying to ‘fix’ things with your current situation that you lose track of the future. You forget about all the things and people that are actually good in your life. People don’t realise that the only fix to a toxic relationship is walking away from it. There is no in-between when it comes to this.
While you may be thinking this isn’t really such a big deal, what you don’t realise is that its relationships like this that can leave a psychological scar. Remember, there is nothing that’s worth more than your happiness and wellbeing. While walking away is probably the hardest thing, you’ve got to do it. Talk to your close friends and family and they can help give you solace through it.
Have you ever been in a toxic relationship? Let us know how you dealt with it, in the comments below.
Don’t forget to follow us at @missmalinilifestyle to never miss a beat!