Discovering that your partner has had an affair can be one of the toughest and most challenging things to overcome in your relationship. Many relationships can and do survive infidelity within the relationship, particularly when they get some professional help to navigate the healing process and rebuild the relationship.

How successful a couple are at restoring their relationship after the affair has come to light, depends largely on the attitude of both people and their willingness to work on overcoming this huge obstacle. It can be done provided you both really want the relationship and you follow some basic rules to help move past it.

A really important step that is often overlooked by couples trying to come to terms with the affair, is the fact that there was something within the relationship itself that allowed a third party to be involved. Recognising that the relationship was not perfect and that both people need to look at what was wrong can be quite confronting.

This is not to say that it is an excuse or that the betrayed spouse is to blame in some way. It simply means that if the relationship was in a strong, healthy place then no other person would be able to get in between the couple.

Accepting that the hurt and trust issues need to be worked through, but also that the relationship itself needs to be examined and repaired is a big step towards healing and creating a strong relationship. Some couples I work with accept this and find that while the affair was devastating initially, the result is that the focus is again put back into the relationship and an even stronger bond is established.

There are some basic steps that need to be covered to recover from an affair. Read More