Relationships: full of mind games, false hope, questioning, paranoia, confusion and if you’re lucky, a little bit of temporary happiness, and if you’re really lucky, lots of happiness, so much so that all you see is rainbows and unicorns and puppies and leprechauns dancing around pots of gold whilst playing the fiddle.

But before you get to that bit there’s all sorts of issues to consider, so how are you meant to tell if it’s worth staying with your current partner who might have their imperfections, or if you’re better of cutting your losses and waiting for someone new to come along?

Body Language

A person’s body language can reveal a lot about what someone thinks of you. For instance, mirroring, where someone copies you own body position, is a sign that they’re into you.

In addition, other non-verbal clues such as leaning in towards you, making lots of eye contact, and pointing their shoulders or pelvis towards you again indicate that they like you.

Lust or Love

Lust is often confused for love and vice versa and the two can be difficult to separate. I’m no expert on the subject so won’t be handing out advice about how to tell if you’re in love or not, but thankfully, other people are willing to do just that! Try looking at these tests about how to know if it’s the real deal or not.

Are you satisfied?

Ultimately, maybe you’re better off with someone else if you are dissatisfied with the relationship or have differing views about important subjects.

Signs such as not receiving enough support, the demand-withdraw pattern (you want him to do the dishes, he turns the TV up) and having unrealistic beliefs can all cause dissatisfaction and indicate it’s better to walk away. More causes of dissatisfaction can be found on the Psych Blog.

Image taken from Steve Wampler’s photostream