How do toxic relationships affect your emotional health? A wise philosopher once said that some cause happiness wherever they go, while others cause happiness whenever they go. Without a doubt, the latter part of the famous Oscar Wilde’s quote was written with toxic people in mind. Yet, even when toxic people leave, things are hardly ever the same. The hurt lingers, the emotional wound festers, and the cancer of insecurities metastasizes. It’s genuinely confounding that the relationship that once brought you joy or should at least bring you happiness becomes your source of pain. A pain of the worst kind. Pain that lingers even when you look whole.
The invisible pain of the heart lays waste to the human soul, mind, and body. Yet, many of us accommodate and endure toxic relationships even when they hurt us and are doomed to fail. So it becomes crucial that you take off the veil of fake love, manipulation and need, to come to the understanding that you’re better off alone. Because toxic relationships cause a great deal of emotional hurt, and here’s how.
Emotionally exhausts you
Toxic relationships are exhausting whether you’re giving your all and getting peanuts in return or your partner smothers you. Toxic relationships do not only take and take from you but also demand that you continually sacrifice, endure, and tolerate the poisonous traits of your partner. Finally, it gets to a point where you have nothing to give and can no longer take their toxic behavior. Though this often signals the end of the relationship, you are hardly ever the same. Emotional exhaustion seeps into your life outside the relationship and takes a while to recuperate from.
Feeds your insecurities
We all come into relationships as imperfect people hoping to be with someone that makes us become a better version of ourselves. But the reverse is the case in toxic relationships that affect our emotional health. Unhealthy relationships amplify our insecurities and make us worse than we were at the beginning of the relationship. For example, if you have trust and jealousy issues and you happen to fall into the hands of a serial cheater, all they leave you with is severe trust issues and unhealthy jealousy. The same also applies to feelings of inadequacy, low self-esteem, and fear that can be fueled respectively by a condescending partner, an emotionally abusive partner, and a physically abusive partner. The scary part is finding all these traits in one person.
Robs you of life’s pleasures
You’re like a horse with blinkered vision when you’re in a toxic relationship. All you see is the negatives, and all you feel is the pain and exhaustion. In the end, you become blind and deaf to all the good things happening around you. It’s either you’re hurting so much, or you’ve become numb that you no longer find pleasure in things and life. So you become webbed in gloominess and sadness, and trust us when we say that things can only get worse from there.
Destroys your emotional support
Even though everyone should learn to be self-sufficient, no one can be entirely self-sufficient. We’re social creatures and thus need people to be completely whole. The same applies to our emotional health, which draws energy and support from our friends and family. This is why it’s no surprise that manipulative and abusive partners seek to isolate you and sever the bond you share with your friends and family. In the end, all you have is your toxic partner without a buffer of friends and family to give you meaningful advice, comfort you, support you emotionally, and bring some happiness to your life.
SCARS YOU
Toxic relationships not only wound you and cause you pain; they often leave scars that hardly ever go away. Victims of physically abusive relationships can testify to how they continually live in fear and how they cringe and recoil from even the gentlest and heartwarming touch. The sad truth is that hurts from toxic relationships always find a way to show up in our daily lives and interactions with other people. Due to toxic relationships affecting emotional health, many lack confidence and self-worth. The self-esteem of many are rags, and many think they’re going crazy due to incessant gaslighting. The few who think they survived become cynics and chronic pessimists who are quick to judge and often on their toes to avoid being exploited again.
Here is the last word on how toxic relationships affect your emotional health
There you have it! So next time you notice the red flags, take off your shoes if they’re a hindrance and run for your life!
Toxic relationships can have a devastating effect on your emotional health. Whether it’s an unhealthy friendship, romantic relationship, or other types of bond with someone else that is causing you pain and suffering, toxic relationships are not worth the price paid in emotions.
This blog post has highlighted some ways to determine if your current relationship is healthy for you and how to break free from these damaging bonds. We want our readers to be happy, so please share this article with anyone who may benefit from reading about toxic relationships! What kind of experience do you think people will have after reading this? Let us know in the comments below.
