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Can a Relationship That Starts Out as an Affair Succeed?

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Some couples are blessed with eternal happiness and an amazing relationship that gets stronger day by day, year by year. But others are just not so lucky, for any of hundreds of possible reasons.

Even though their relationship can start out great, they slowly start arguing and often grow apart until they’re downright miserable being together. Counseling can frequently help them mend their differences, but sometimes even that fails. Yet they stay together in an unhappy relationship because no one wants to think about break up and divorce; because to many, that means they’ve failed.

Often times, these unhappy people meet other unhappy people in a similar situation, and start an extramarital relationship, a.k.a. an affair. And no, it’s not always just about sex. Many times, an affair serves to fill an empty emotional void.

This new relationship can seem stronger and happier than the current marriage either partner is trying to escape. But, with the extreme stress and social pressure they’ll both face, can a relationship that starts out as an affair succeed and end up as a happy, long term relationship?

Today’s question is from a lady in Australia facing this very real issue.

Dear Dan and Jennifer,

OK, I’ll prepare myself for an onslaught of hatred…. it’ll just mirror reality anyway. Two years ago I fell in love with a married man and the feelings were mutual. He had not loved his wife for many years – he had been feeling depressed and decided that was “his lot” in life.

We have tried a few times over the past two years to end things with each other, but we can’t. We feel – maybe as every affair couple does – that we are meant to be together. He has decided he cannot keep living a lie, and is making the first moves to move out. No, he is not going to tell her about me because it would make things even harder than they already will be (they have a 10 year old daughter). He has told her that he does not love her and wants to leave. She is resisting that, and is trying to do whatever she can to encourage him to stay. But he’s determined to leave, and eventually we will make our relationship public.

My question is, knowing that the statistics are poor for couples who get together as a result of an affair, what are the pitfalls we should be aware of, and how do we get through them. We want to be together forever. We know this is not ideal. But can you please offer some advice?

— Ria in Australia

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GvGli8YbX7c[/youtube]

How Can I Convince Her That A Long Distance Relationship Can Work?

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What do you do when you meet the perfect girl in college, but then you both graduate and your jobs take you to different cities?

Can a long distance relationship work? We believe that it can under the right circumstances.

What if SHE doesn’t think it can? How do you convince her? This one’s a little more tricky…

Here’s a great question from a guy in this very predicament.

Dear Dan and Jennifer,

I have known my girlfriend for about 2.5 years and we have been dating for 2 years. We met in college and both graduated in December We knew that we would live in separate cities in October. she adamantly stated at the time that she WOULD NOT and COULD NOT do a long distance relationship

But, because we both love each other, we stayed together anyway…

We have been living apart for 3 months now and have seen each other just about every other weekend. When we are together, we are both very happy. If you were to judge our relationship based on the weekends we spend together, it would be very healthy, but she seems to let the physical separation affect her opinion about our relationship…she still holds the mindset that long distance relationships do not work.

She tells me that she is extremely lonely during the week and needs human contact.

This long distance relationship is getting to be very difficult. I do think that our relationship would be very solid if we were living in the same city. We are each other’s best friends and have talked about marriage in the future.

What can we do to make sure our relationship lasts? I would also like her to change her negative attitude about the physical separation and have her maybe just consider moving to my second job location. Any advice would be appreciated!

Thanks!

— John

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EerkFWFTMA0[/youtube]

Ultimatums – The Fastest Way to End a New Relationship

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How soon can you get your new love to say “I Love You”?

You know the feeling… you’ve been dating for months, and he still won’t say those magical little words. How frustrating! Why are so many men (and some women for that matter) so afraid to say “I love you”? Is it really so hard?

Is he unsure about you, or just afraid of commitment?

Of course that leaves you wondering… is he really ready to give himself fully to you, or is he holding back? Is he doubting himself, or worse, is he doubting you?

Or is he just afraid of commitment? But you still have to wonder why that is.

How can you know he’s really over his ex wife or girlfriend?

In the end, you want to feel that he’s completely over the other woman – his ex wife, girlfriend, etc – and wants only you. And it’s only natural to want to hear those words from him, to want that reassurance that he feels the same way you do.

But how do you make him say it without damaging your relationship and even breaking up? More importantly, SHOULD you insist he say anything at all?

Should you demand to hear “I Love You” – or else?

Drawing that line in the sand sometimes feels like a good idea – a last hope of security and stability – but it can often backfire. Many couples break up every day just because they get too hung up on the terms they use to define their relationship, on saying certain words, etc.

Fact is, every relationship is unique, because every person is unique. When we try to put relationships in a firm box, we often end up disappointed, and sometimes we end up alone…

Love by any other name?

If you are generally happy in your relationship, how about trying to live your life one day at a time, enjoying the wonderful time with your partner, and not worrying about what to call it.

Be sure to read the question, then watch the video and leave your thoughts below.

Here’s the full story…

Dear Dan and Jennifer,

My boyfriend and I just broke up after a year long relationship. He has been struggling getting over his divorce. He had been in divorce preceding when we met and separated for a year at that point.

When we started I said “I don’t think you are over your ex-wife, get back to me when you are.” He said he “didn’t want to lose me and he wanted to try.” He tried I guess.

I of course fell in love over the year. In Feb. I told him I need to be with someone who was in love with me and could say it. I gave him 2 months time to think about it. He said he didn’t want to lose me but he didn’t know how long it would be before he could love someone, and didn’t want to lead me on and waste my time.

I am devastated. He says I have many qualities he wants in a partner and I’ve done everything right. We are just in different places and he needs to get over the divorce alone. He says he hasn’t written me off and I wasn’t a rebound, but i feel he has and that I was. Have I lost him forever? And what can I do to NOT lose him?

I am trying to move on but i feel I have made the biggest mistake and lost the best guy. He wants to be friends, I can’t handle it and i am petrified to go into the friend zone. I just don’t want to lose out. What’s should I do?

– Ann from California

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nz5FHHrLmKs[/youtube]

He’s STILL Living With His Ex Girlfriend After The Break Up?

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New love and previous lovers

New love is wonderful and full of joy, but there’s always that little matter of your new partner’s previous lovers.

We usually file that under “baggage” and hope they’re over those previous relationships, but sometimes those relationships live on in some form.

Letting go and moving on

Imagine dating a guy who still lives with his ex-girlfriend, for, ahem “financial reasons”. Now, it’s not that hard to understand that they may have gotten themselves in debt and he can’t afford to move out (and maintain his lifestyle).

Trust… is he really over her?

But it does make you wonder… is he really over her and ready to move on, or is he holding on to the past and hoping to get back together with him.

How can you know for sure if he is really over her? Even if he is over her, how can you be sure that he won’t accidentally give in to an urge on a dark and lonely night when he’s alone at home with her? Can you ever know for sure?

It’s a lot easier to slip up and have an “oops” moment with a previous lover, since you’ve already been intimate and you know each other well. All it takes is a little alcohol and a surge of passion, and you’ve got “slippage”!

Trust in a relationship is very important, but if you put yourself in a position to mess up, eventually you will. So do you demand he moves out from his girlfriend’s place, or can you just trust him to be faithful to only you (and to not get any urges on that dark and stormy night after he’s had one too many glasses of wine)?

Be sure to read the question, then watch the video and leave your thoughts below.

Here’s the full story…

Dear Dan and Jennifer,

I’ve just started going out with a bloke who classes himself as single but has told me he still lives with his ex girlfriend (if she’s really his ex!). According to him, he still lives with her for financial reasons only, (I guess this means he couldn’t afford a place of his own). He tells me there is no longer a relationship going on between them.

His work mate told me on the quiet that it was genuine what he is telling me, but he agreed himself that it was an odd set up. I can’t bring myself to fully believe his work mate, because if he does know he’s still sleeping with her, he wouldn’t tell me anyway, would he?

Supposing he is telling the truth – how do I know? I don’t want to continue this with the thought that my boyfriend and his work mate are having a laugh behind my back.

– Jen from England

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oB4t5Pxn-d8[/youtube]

He’s Divorcing His Wife to be With Me – Or Is He?

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Losing the love

Couples often drift apart over the months and years together, and sadly most either don’t notice this shift or are too busy and distracted to do anything about it.

What’s amazing is that married couples are even more at risk than their non-married counterparts. Their perceived sense of security from “being married” leads them to be less worried about their relationship. So they get complacent and stop trying.

It’s human nature for most people to do the least possible required to get by. And if your partner is promised to you forever, then where’s the challenge in keeping them? Seriously, it’s already guaranteed, so really, why bother? It sounds crude, but think about it.

Finding love again, and a moving into new relationship

Well, after years of a downhill relationship, many married people find someone else who brings them happiness, and fall in love all over again. It happens much more than most people think. People don’t just fall in love when they’re single – they fall in love when there’s room in their lives for someone to bring them happiness.

But then comes the really hard part – the painful process of moving on from that previous relationship (often the marriage). And of course there’s the guilt that most people feel in this situation. That guilt is even so much more intense when they have children.

The new partner can often get very frustrated over how long this process truly takes…

And what about his relationship with his soon-to-be ex husband or wife? Will it just abruptly end, or will it just change over time? And will the “ex” be part of the new partner’s life from now on?

This is a really tough situation, but a very common one. Be sure to read the question, then watch the video and leave your thoughts below.

Here’s the full story…

Dear Dan and Jennifer,

I’ve been with my boyfriend for about 2 years. He started seeing me behind his wife’s back. She knows about us now and has for about 9 months. They are in the middle of getting a divorce so we can be together.

My problem is that she still lives with him. They still do family things (they have 2 kids together). She still texts him and calls him to let him know what she’s doing where she’s at and when she’s on her way home from work.

He told me that the only reason things are still this way is because of the kids. He does come out and spend the night and stuff but we only get 1 or 2 nights or days out of the week.

Should I believe him? Should I continue waiting for the day that we will be together completely?

I’m asking this because I sometimes feel that there is still something going on between them like a relationship. Do you think the same thing? Do you think their divorce will ever be final? Do you think she will ever move out?

I’ll be waiting for your answers thank you very much

– Tabatha

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWWqMXuHXTY[/youtube]