Extreme Jealousy: A Sign of Unhealthy Love.

As the honeymoon phase of the relationship begins to fade extreme jealousy and possessiveness may creep in. Your partner may become needy and more demanding. Wanting to know where you are at all times, who you were with, accusing you of cheating or flirting, trying to control what you wear and eat are all signs of unhealthy love. South Asian cultures often normalizes jealousy as a sign of love, some people may even try to ‘make their partner jealous’. And while jealousy is a human emotion, extreme jealousy has an angry, threatening and desperate edge to it. This is not love it is ownership.

Unhealthy love in its extreme forms is abuse. Not every unhealthy behavior pattern means that there is abuse in a relationship, it is important to look at the signs in their totality, to see the patterns in the relationship and trust your gut. Recognizing these early signs of unhealthy love can help us work on them to make them better through open communication, mutual respect and kindness. Understanding is the first step to improving, but not every relationship can be made better, some of them you may have to leave behind.

If you feel like your relationship is heading towards abuse or you are in an abusive relationship, seek help. You are not alone.

You can call our confidential hotline on 713- 981- 7645 or look for resources on our website.

Although love is an emotion and an instinct, the ability to love in a healthy way is a skill that we can all build on and improve over time, and it is high time we all did that.