When it comes to breakups – there are two types of people. Some treat their exes as enemies or pretend they don’t exist, while others choose to stay friends and continue being civil with them.
There are many reasons for either choice. Sometimes the breakup is messy and just horrible and you never want to see that person again, sometimes the reason for the breakup is just unforgivable.
Sometimes you get really hurt and it makes sense that you’d want to avoid that person.
That all makes sense. But breakups aren’t always messy and it’s not always because someone messed up, sometimes they’re just sad because it’s as simple two people falling out of love.
It’s perfectly fine to stay friends with that person afterwards. In fact here are some reasons to stay friends after a breakup:
1. Your friendship is stronger than romance
There are times when you start out as friends and then you become more than that. Perhaps you gave it a go and it just didn’t work, perhaps you’re just better off as friends. You shouldn’t lose that person just because it turned out that you weren’t great together in a romantic sense. Your friendship might be stronger than your romance.
2. You live together
So if you’ve been together for a while you might’ve moved in together. But what happens after you break up? Is one of you expected to just move out immediately and start their life afresh? Who can even find a place to live that quickly? If your breakup was mutual and there’s no bad blood between you – staying friends is a good option because chances are you will have to continue living together for a little while until you sort out your living situation.
3. You have kids
Breaking up when you have kids together can be tough. A lot of couples put off for the sake of the kids and because they don’t want to break up the family. But it’s perfectly fine to break up even if you have kids together. You both deserve to be with someone you love. But it also makes sense to stay friends with your ex so that you can still raise the kids together and they get to see both of their parents whenever they want.
4. You work together
Perhaps you work for the same company and you actually like your jobs. You know you’re gonna see each other at work, there’s no need to make it awkward and dread running into each other in the corridors. Staying friends and being civil to each other might be the best thing you can do so that your work runs smoothly, but you can still choose to not see each other after the workday ends and go your separate ways.
5. You have more good memories than bad
Some relationships just run their course in a couple of years and they just kind of fizzle out. You no longer feel the same way you did when you started dating, perhaps you start being annoyed with the person and all their quirks are becoming their vices now. But if you have more good memories than bad ones with them, if you can still remember the good times with a smile on your face it’s probably a good idea to remain friends. You’ve shared a life for a while, and it was good while it lasted, why would you cut them out now?
6. You just want to
And finally, the simplest yet possibly the most important reason to stay friends with your ex is because you both want to. You don’t need to go into why and what for, you don’t need to make a pro and con list. If both of you feel like you just want to remain friends – you totally should do that.
