Sometimes I think it is the fear of being alone, fear of the unknown,
It could also be comfortable staying with what you know.
could be financial.

There are many reasons.

Hope. Love. Forgiveness. Hope. Hope. Hope. :)

I did that for years...stayed in a relationship that I was completely miserable in all for the sake of wanting to be loved.

After I left his drug abusing/womanizing ass, I realized I didn't need anyone else to make me happy, I can only create that in myself.

I have had much peace ever since..

love and hope......hope..hope. lol

My ex husband was also a womanizer/drug user/pathelogical liar. but for some messed up reason, i kept trying and trying to help him. I loved him so much but he does not have the strength to change. thankfully i did! but it took me 4 years.

I think that you get use to somebody always being there, you know. And for me, life would be absolutely terrible without having somebody constantly there to reassure my existance.

But then, I also have Borderline PD. So my perception on things might be completely different.

=) That's why I would though.

O. I guess other reasons, too. Like Eph said, hope. Because the relationship wasn't always terrible, so I think I would just hope that it goes back to being wonderful.

I always thought people were crazy for staying in situations that were making them unhappy. Now im in one and its just the fact of having to move back home, look for a new job and lose my own space and separate our pets, having to leave that person that sadly you do love but know deep down its a toxic relationship. You basically lose or have to change everything its a lot emotionally to do. Its easier said then done,

For me, I stay in a relationship that makes me miserable on occasion because it makes me happy more often than miserable.

I've also learned that I contribute a lot to the being miserable part. I honestly believe I am not content to be content. I think the thrill of the challenge keeps me going. Seems messed up. Probably is, but it is my own reason. Not sure why other people choose to remain in chaos and pain.

I was in a marriage for 2 yrs. some was good, but most of it was bad. I had to live with 6 dogs, 8 cats, all in the house. After so long, I just couldn't take it anymore. The messes, urine smell in the house, and all the clutter. Plus 2 kids that didn't do shit to help out.

I didn't stay! We still talk occasionally, even go out, but my heart's not into her anymore.

i think when ur in a relationship for an extended amount of time not only are u comfortable there but it becomes an addiction to this person. plus if its truly love then you want to make it work, no relationship is perfect people come on here and put up post because their trying to make the relationship better not to bitch about how horrible it is(in most cases). u try and try but if it doesnt get better than you have to reach the point where ur done with it, but every person differs on the breaking point. there is alot of truth in the old saying "there's a thin line between love and hate" because the person u love is also the one that pisses u off the worst because they matter to u more than anyone and to allow someone to have that power over u can be scary or exciting all depends on how u look at it

I stayed in unhealthy relationships in the past for a couple reasons:

It was all I ever knew (my parents were abusive and neglected their parental responsibilities)

It was all I felt I deserved (I truly believed that I was destined to be unhappy my entire life)

I didn't see it as unhealthy.

None of these reasons are acceptable. Eventually, through a lot of pain, I learned what a true healthy relationship was and could own my faults in that I CHOSE unhealthy people on purpose because I was trying to learn how to make my Father love me. I thought if I could make someone that was messed up and unhealthy love me, then I could in turn learn to make my Father and Mother love me. It never worked.

I wholeheartedly believed that I never deserved to be happy. I had been told all of my life that I was worthless, would never amount to anything, and would never be successful at anything. Eventually, I believed it. I didn't care about my life anymore. I thought it was just my cards to always be unhappy. So I gave up. I gave up fighting for a healthy relationship because I realized I didn't know what it was in the first place and even if I did, it wouldn't matter because I didn't deserve it.

Because I grew up in an abusive home, I didn't know what healthy was, so I didn't see the relationships I was in as UNhealthy. I saw them as just what it was. But I didn't go the way of thinking it was stupid and being single. I always felt that I had to be in a relationship with someone. Because I was constantly attempting to fill that void and figure out how to make my Father love me.

So why did I stay? I stayed mostly because I didn't know, believe, or understand that there was better.

I would also like to comment, for those that are currently in unhealthy relationships, that I was wrong.

We ALL are worthy of healthy relationships.

Healthy relationships do not include physical fighting, emotional destruction, neglect, or abuse of the relationship in any manner.

A healthy relationship enhances your life, not diminishes it. A healthy relationship is sharing your life with someone that compliments you. The key to love is to follow the same goals and to work as a team always. A healthy relationship has arguments but do not have fist fights or cheating involved.

I wish you all could see that hope someone will change is usually not going to come to be. I learned this the hard way. The person you think you met was usually a facade. The real person that you are currently unhappy with IS the real person.

Sometimes I think people want to believe that things can get better, but just don't know how. They keep hoping the light will come on or they will find a way to get through to the SO.

It seems then you get caught up in the hope of it might happen that you don't stop to notice it probably won't.

So people are creatures of habit.

I myself have been in realtionships in which they became unhealthy due in part to me no longer being happy. This coupled with the fact that like any realtionship its hard work. When one person or both become seprate in the things they do then its (from my point of view) almost natural for thier to loose what once was there. My current/last as this is pretty much done I wasn't happy and I sought out things to make me happy.

A couple yrs. after my divorce I got into a relationship and within one month I knew that this person was not the one, considering all the serious red flags. The first 6 mo. I continued to believe that this was just temporary and it would not be a heartbreaker if I left. At 11 mo. she left the relationship and I was devastated. What's crazy is I thought that I was the one that would eventually walk.
My reasoning for staying that long was strictly about EGO. Here was a younger beautiful woman who enjoyed sex, and told me how great of a person I was, and that's why I stayed. I 've learned that it's not worth being in an unhealthy relationship.