5 Benefits to Ending a Toxic Relationship (& How to Heal)

In this article, I’m going to cover some of the benefits to ending a toxic relationship. If you’re in a bad relationship, it’s essential to your mental, emotional, and physical health that you break free.

All relationships are complicated to a point. They can bring the highest of highs and joys you probably never thought possible, as well as the darkest lows you also – hopefully – didn’t think possible.

Toxic relationships are incredibly dangerous. The victim often doesn’t realize they’re being controlled and abused.

Worse, they usually blame themselves or think they can’t or don’t deserve to do better.

Everyone deserves better. There is a healthy, loving, fulfilling relationship out there for everyone. But you have to break free of the bad to find the good.

Here are just a few of the benefits of ending a toxic relationship and starting on the road to healing and finding a more positive future:

You Will Find a Healthy Relationship

One of the saddest things about seeing someone in a toxic relationship is that they don’t think they can do better.

They have been emotionally and mentally abused to the point where they feel stuck. They feel like they don’t deserve better, or that they deserve what they’re going through as they’re being told it’s their fault.

It’s sad because it couldn’t be further from the truth. All the blame is on the abusive partner. You do deserve better, and you will (if you look) find a healthy, fun, and fulfilling relationship once you leave.

The damage is often long-lasting for the partner that suffered at the hands of the toxic partner. I can’t tell you that you’ll jump straight into a good relationship, neither should you try.

You should take time for yourself first. You will only be able to allow someone into your life to love you once you love yourself. Which means being strong enough to end a toxic relationship.

Related – Does your boyfriend put you down all the time joking around?

Your Health Will Improve

There are various types of toxic relationships, but the one thing they all have in common is that they have a negative effect on your health.

Typically, the partner that is the cause of the dysfunction needs to be in control. This chips away at the confidence, self-esteem, and self-worth of the other person. All forms of mental abuse.

There is often emotional abuse too, used as a form of control to keep them close. This may also lead to physical abuse, and in some cases, more serious actions.

You Give Yourself a Chance to Be Happy

It’s always the first question people ask, “why do you stay in a bad relationship?”. 

Low self-esteem and other mental and emotional anguish are the main causes. It’s a vicious cycle, a person is in a bad relationship, the effects of which destroy their self-worth, they don’t have the strength to get out.

You’ll never be happy unless you break free. It’s as simple as that.

You’re Getting Out Before It Gets Worse

If ending a bad relationship because of what you’re going through right now isn’t enough, thinking of the future should.

It only gets worse. Abusers do not change on their own. They can be helped, sure, but that shouldn’t be your burden.

It’s essential that you get out of a bad relationship and not look back before it gets worse.

Related – Do you feel awkward around your partner?

You Deserve Better

Everyone deserves better than to be in a toxic relationship. I know it’s always going to happen, that’s just one of the unfortunate things about life, some people are broken for various reasons.

No one deserves to be part of a toxic situation. It’s an uphill struggle to get out, but you absolutely must realize that you cannot fix the person and you’re not helping either of you by staying in the relationship.

You deserve better.

What to Do After Ending a Toxic Relationship?

Heal, that’s what you need to do after ending a toxic relationship. How you do this will depend on how bad it was, and the kinds of things that work well for you.

There are a few things that are important to remember though:

• None of the situation was your fault
• It’s ok to be sad, cry, and take time to get over it
• You have to cut ties with your ex-partner and not go back
• Surround yourself with positive people and loved ones
• Take time to learn how to value and love yourself

Everyone’s healing journey is different and personal to themselves. Don’t be afraid to reach out to as many people and ask for as much help as you need.

Why Do I End up in Toxic Relationships?

Some people are just more likely to end up in a toxic relationship. Even if they’re aware of it, they find it hard to avoid bouncing from one to the next.

Generally speaking, there are a few core reasons for this:

• Not knowing what a real relationship is or should be
• Rushing into things
• Having low self-esteem
• Being too trusting
• Lacking a solid support network

Can a Toxic Relationship Affect Your Health?

Absolutely, being in a toxic relationship will have a negative impact on your mental and emotional health. Worse still, it often leads to physical abuse a lot of the time.

The longer a person is in this kind of relationship, the lower their self-esteem will be, the more drained and withdrawn they’ll become, and it can easily lead to a spiral of depression.

This is why it’s essential you break free and find the help you need. The sooner you do so, the faster you’ll recover.

Resources

Keck Medicine of USC – Negative health effects of bad relationships

Image credits – Photo by Ethan Sykes on Unsplash