Trust is one of the single most important things in any relationship. In order to be truly happy with your partner, you need to feel that you can trust them implicitly. This means you need to trust them to have your best interests at heart and to keep you safe but it also means that you need to trust them to stay loyal to you.
When that trust is gone, it can be toxic and corrosive for your relationship. You’ll find yourself feel insecure a lot of the time and this is not just unpleasant for you; it can also lead to arguments if you become suspicious or questioning – or if you end up betraying their privacy.
How to Rebuild the Trust
There are some people who will tell you that it’s impossible to regain trust in a relationship when it’s gone. While this is certainly true in some cases, it definitely is not always the case. Apart from anything else, there have been plenty of examples of couples who have successfully bounced back after their trust has been completely compromised. It’s worth a shot!
So where do you begin? One important step is to have an honest, open and completely frank discussion with your partner about the state of your relationship, the lack of trust and what has led you to this point.
This is important because it will allow you to really understand what led to your current situation and what can be done to fix it.
If your partner cheated on you for instance, you can find out from them why it happened and if they honestly want to make an effort to be loyal in future. If they won’t be honest about what happened though, then you won’t be able to have that discussion and you won’t know if anything has changed.
Make Sacrifices
It’s not necessary to make sacrifices for the sake of making them. In fact, this will very often only lead to resentment.
However, if your partner asks you to change something that isn’t easy, you should make sure to seriously consider making the compromise. This won’t only make them feel more comfortable but it will also demonstrate just how serious you are about building trust.
Change Your Circumstances
Another reason to make sacrifices is if they help you to change the circumstances that led to your current situation.
Changing circumstances is often a good way to solve all manner of problems. When you change your circumstances, it helps you to change your routine, remove triggers and even break bad habits. Changing your situation can also help you to create a ‘fresh start’ of some kind. This might mean moving away together, or it may just mean looking for new jobs or changing your routine in a big way.
This ‘fresh start’ creates a new starting point for your relationship and if you can both agree to forget the past, then this will give you a good shot of building something better on the ashes of your old relationship. You may even consider re-saying your vows! This way, you’ll be making a promise to be loyal to each other in front of all of your friends and family. That has to be worth something, right?