A toxic relationship occurs when one or both people are prioritizing love over three main components i.e., respect, trust, and affection. Prioritising the love you get out of a relationship over the respect you are given, you will be treated like a doormat. If you prioritize love over trust, you will end up tolerating lying and cheating. If you prioritize love over affection, you must end up in a cold and distant relationship.

Warning signs of a toxic relationship:

The most serious warning signs include any form of violence, abuse, and disrespect. The first and simplest is persistent unhappiness. If a relationship starts to make you feel sad, angry, anxious, or resigned, instead of happy it means you have sold out, and it’s time to get out of the toxic relationship.

Negative shifts in mental health, personality, and self-esteem are also red flags in any relationship.

Types of toxic relationships:

It is important to recognise that toxic relationships are not limited to romantic relationships. Let us have a look at the types of toxic relationships:

• When there are negative behaviors- some people constantly complain, pass critical remarks and overall create a negative toxic environment. Other traits include perfectionism, unhealthy competitiveness, and frequent lying.
• When there is a lack of self-awareness- sometimes people are unaware of the negative effect on others. They may not know healthier ways to communicate.
• When a person intentionally hurt others- some people are deliberately rude and hurtful. A person may also try to control or manipulate you which is also a toxic behavior.
• When a partner is constantly cheating- if the partner lies and cheats without even trying to change the behavior, it adds a toxic element and ruins the relationship.
• When a person is abusive- when your partner hurts you intentionally and their behavior is considered abusive.

How to turn a toxic relationship into a healthy relationship?

A toxic relationship is a rough patch that is recurring due to bad behavior from both sides. The road from a toxic relationship to a healthy one is not easy. Let us have a look at some of the points to turn a toxic relationship into a healthy one: 

• Both partners are willing to change- it is obvious that for making the relationship work, both partners must work together. If you both have expressed a genuine willingness to work things out, you must proceed.
• Both partners recognize the lack of affection/trust/respect and are willing to work on it- even if you both want things to get better, you must admit to certain things and fix that. This is tough than it sounds. One can feel like they aren’t trusted and so they think that’s what needs to be worked on. The other person might feel there is no trust in the relationship due to a lack of affection.
• Both partners can communicate healthily without excessive blaming or judgment- you both must be willing to work on things and must solve real problems instead of blaming or judging each other. It does not matter whose fault it is if the goal is to move the relationship in a healthy direction. It means both people must prioritize the relationship over selfish desires.

Fixing a toxic relationship is not an easy thing to do but the most thing which is worth doing is not easy. You might also decide to end the relationship at some point and that’s okay but if you both are willing to work on it then it is worth the effort and also the awkward conversations and pain also comes along.

People with mental illness, such as bipolar disorder, major depression, or even depressive tendencies maybe are susceptible to toxic relationships since they are already sensitive to negative emotions.

Toxic vs Abusive relationships

All toxic relationships are abusive however, all abusive relationships can be considered toxic. In a toxic relationship, there is a lack of respect and a violation of boundaries. Sometimes even this behavior occurs without the person even realizing that they are doing it.

If this kind of behavior is repeated consistently with the intent to harm others, then the relationship will be considered abusive.

When determining if a relationship is creating toxicity, it is very important to look at which behavior is being displayed frequently. It is very important to recognise the signs of toxicity whether it is in you or another person.

Conclusion:

When dealing with any type of toxic relationship, it is important to focus on health and well-being. If you are dealing with someone who drains you of your energy and happiness, consider removing them from your life or at least limit the time spent with them.