9 Signs Of A Toxic Relationship

Oct 24, 2017

Good and healthy relationships make you feel happy, safe, and free to be yourself. Toxic relationships, on the other hand, are emotionally, mentally, and physically draining, and should be avoided as soon as red flags start going up. 

Here are nine red flags of a toxic relationship:

1. Constantly walking on thin ice

Healthy relationships are ones in which you can express your opinions and feel free to be yourself. Changing your opinions just to please your partner, or being afraid of expressing yourself because you fear your partner's reaction, are both signs of an unhealthy relationship.

2. Literally feeling sick
Our bodies are more perceptive than we think. If they sense danger, they send out warning signals. If you're feeling stressed, nauseous, or drained (whether it's emotionally, mentally, or physically) around your partner, your body might be trying to warn you.

3. Constant fighting

Misunderstandings should lessen overtime. If a relationship seems to be stuck in an endless cycle of fighting, then it's not moving forward and it certainly isn't healthy for anyone.

4. Never-ending theatrics
Disagreements are common and can be healthy. Arguments full of theatrics including screaming matches, harsh words, and accusations, however, are far from healthy, and are a strong indicator of a doomed relationship.

5. Isolation

If a partner attempts to isolate the other and separate him or her from friends and family, a red flag should immediately go up. This is a sign of a toxic relationship with a controlling partner. 

6. Keeping score
When one, or both, partners keep track of the other's wrongdoings, the relationship remains stuck in the past. Bringing up past mistakes as excuses for new ones leads to a bitter and unhealthy relationship in which neither partner can move forward.

7. Stonewalling

Communicating about important things is crucial for a relationship to progress. A partner avoiding serious conversations, especially about the future, is a sign of a stagnant relationship.

8. Power struggle
A healthy relationship is not about fighting for control. It's a balanced partnership, like a leveled seesaw. When there are control issues in the relationship, the balance is disrupted, resulting in an unhealthy power struggle. 

9. The relationship changed

A relationship should feel good, safe, and like a partnership in which both parties are equally committed. If the relationship has changed, if it's a source of stress, and if it's not a happy place, then it has turned into a toxic one that should probably end. 

SHARE this article if you have experienced any of these signs or you know a friend or loved one who is in an unhealthy relationship!