What happens in a person's mind before they cheat? Psychologist: 'Relationships don't fall apart overnight'

Relationships do not crumble overnight, and infidelity typically does not emerge from nowhere. Often, before one partner drifts toward someone else, the relationship enters a phase where mutual interest wanes.

Psychologist Gabriela Marc, a principal clinical psychologist and associate professor, explains the mental processes preceding infidelity and the step-by-step deterioration of relationships. She notes that love can create a comforting certainty, a belief that finding the right person brings stability. This hope leads to imagining a future, building a life together, and assuming love means fundamental change is over.

However, Marc points out that life operates differently. "Everything alive transforms, and people are no exception. Every experience leaves its mark on our identity." Joys, losses, successes, and failures all shape us. Time silently alters everyone. The person beside us today is not the same as ten or twenty years ago. The crucial question is how the relationship adapts to this continuous transformation.

Does it remain a space where two people continue to discover each other, or does it become merely a place where responsibilities are shared? Marc suggests that closeness typically erodes not from major conflicts, but from an accumulation of almost imperceptible changes. She believes love's true depth is revealed in how a relationship navigates these subtle shifts. Initial curiosity, fascination with a partner's unique gestures, and engaging conversations are natural at the start.

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Iubirea are darul de a ne face să credem că, atunci când întâlnim omul potrivit, viața se așază în sfârșit în jurul unei certitudini.