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Old Dec 01, 2015, 11:35 AM
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DBTDiva DBTDiva is offline
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Member Since: Oct 2015
Location: USA South
Posts: 507
Quote:
Originally Posted by angelicgoldfish05 View Post
I always get real bad over it and abandon nearly everything I was doing in life before I met the person. Isn't that a good thing though?
No, no it's not.

Everything in life needs balance. You have to invest as much in yourself as you do in the relationship. Giving up everything in life to a relationship doesn't work because the person you are with likes who you are now, not a one-dimensional person who has no interests outside the relationship. What you are doing now is not sustainable. New relationships/love is like a high; research has shown that it effects the brain in ways that are similar to cocaine. Some of us react much more strongly to that "new relationship high" which yes while normal does not mean that it's a good idea to abandon nearly everything you were doing in life before you met the person.

I don't know how old you are, but think back on past relationships and answer these questions to yourself - Do they start out with that intense in love feeling and fizzle out in 3-6 months? When you first connect with someone does it feel like you've known them forever? Do you both share really intimate, personal things pretty quickly? Do you tend to get committed very early on? Every time you fall for someone do you feel elated that you've finally found The One only to realize some time later that they aren't quite as great as you thought? Do you find that after a few months that it tends to be you taking care of them and them not really paying attention to your needs? Are you frustrated that the love seems to fade away so quickly? Do you feel like if you could just get the relationship thing handled then eventually you'd be able to focus on the other stuff you want out of life (i.e. once I am with The One and things are settled then I will finish college/start my career)?

I ask because your story reminds me of me. I finished my undergrad degree right after I turned 30. I started it at 17. I took time off in between starting and finishing mostly due to relationships. My priority was always love, I found that to be very romantic. Eventually, when I was about 26, I realized that all I had to show for my life was a series of dead-end jobs and failed relationships. I was so frustrated! It took about four more years after that, breaking up with "The One" for the person that I had decided was actually "The One" before I got a handle on what was going on with me.
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Borderline PD/Major Depression/Anxiety

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angelicgoldfish05
Thanks for this!
angelicgoldfish05, Trippin2.0, unaluna