Make or break

 GOOD HEALTH & WELLBEING MAGAZINE

They say all relationships require work, but sometimes you need to either pull through or pull the plug. We ask the experts how to make that call.

Once upon a time, two people fell deeply in love, got married and lived happily ever after.

Although endearing, this classic fairytale narrative neatly glosses over the fact that all long-term relationships will likely go through difficult patches, and not all of them will come out the other side – in fact, one in three marriages in Australia and New Zealand will end in divorce. So how can you tell whether a challenging period in your relationship is just a short-term hurdle or whether it’s time to start packing your bags?

Dr Monty Badami, an anthropologist with a special interest in relationships, says it’s completely normal to find yourself looking at your primary relationship from time to time and asking: ‘Is this still what I want?’

Download article to read more.