{"id":1347,"date":"2019-12-19T13:02:40","date_gmt":"2019-12-19T18:02:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/thecelebritytherapist\/?p=1347"},"modified":"2019-12-19T13:02:40","modified_gmt":"2019-12-19T18:02:40","slug":"love-addiction-and-dating-with-a-purpose","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/thecelebritytherapist\/2019\/12\/love-addiction-and-dating-with-a-purpose.html","title":{"rendered":"Love Addiction and Dating with a Purpose"},"content":{"rendered":"<div><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-1260\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/243\/2018\/07\/wine-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" \/>Most of the time, love addicts are very susceptible to dating anyone who they are attracted to and who shows some interest in them. Because they are love addicts and feel they need romantic love to be happy, they will settle for less than what they want. They will allow themselves to keep dating someone who does not want to move on to the next stage.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Usually, love addicts have dating down to a science. They know where to meet people. They have an excellent online profile that says nothing about what they really want, but is guaranteed to get someone\u2019s attention. They have the clothes they need to impress their date, and they are excellent conversationalists.<\/div>\n<div>What they do not have is an understanding of how to get what they really want. They think impressing someone is enough. They want someone handsome or beautiful in their life to compensate for their own low self-esteem. They glide from one date to another hoping something magical will have. In other words, they are<i>\u00a0not\u00a0<\/i>dating with a purpose.<\/div>\n<div>Dating with a purpose is reserved for those who are making a concerted effort to find out if there is enough compatibility to sustain a healthy relationship which includes romantic love, excitement, getting along, and a future together. In other words, dating with a purpose is like interviewing someone for the most important role in his or her life as your partner.<\/div>\n<div>Dating with a purpose is not easy. It takes effort, patience, self-discipline and the wisdom of others who have gone through this process themselves and been successful.<\/div>\n<div>Since dating with a purpose is one of the most important things we do in life, I have created a list of things one should look for in a relationship. You can use this as a guide.<\/div>\n<div>1. Honesty that engenders trust.<\/div>\n<div>2. Readiness for a relationship (both partners).<\/div>\n<div>3. The ability to negotiate or compromise.<\/div>\n<div>4. Self-awareness.<\/div>\n<div>5. Self-esteem.<\/div>\n<div>6. Communication skills.<\/div>\n<div>7. Sexual compatibility.<\/div>\n<div>8. There should be a recognition of the fact that each person had a different childhood experience.<\/div>\n<div>9. Similar (but not necessarily identical) values: This includes such issues as money, monogamy, and parenting.<\/div>\n<div>10. Patience and tolerance.<\/div>\n<div>11. It is important to accept the fact that there will be days when the relationship seems very ordinary or even boring.<\/div>\n<div>12. The willingness to substitute influencing for controlling: Saying something once and then letting it go.\u00a0 Being a role-model instead of nagging someone to change.<\/div>\n<div>13. Healthy boundaries.<\/div>\n<div>14. Devotion.<\/div>\n<div>15. Quality time together.<\/div>\n<div>16. Knowing when to stay and when to leave.<\/div>\n<div>17. It is also important to have compatibility and \u201cease\u201d in a relationship:\u00a0 At the same time, it must be understood that no relationship is perfect.<\/div>\n<div>18. The willingness to face your problems (without over-reacting).<\/div>\n<div>19. Reciprocity (give and take).<\/div>\n<div>21. Realistic expectations. After the honeymoon, relationships are not a romantic fantasy anymore.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>In conclusion . . . I believe we cannot just start dating and hope that everything will fall in to place. I think we need to be honest from the beginning about what we are looking for and move on if we are not happy. .<\/div>\n<p><em>If you think you might be codependent<\/em><em>\u00a0or a love addict,\u00a0<\/em><em>get Sherry\u2019s FREE Ebook,\u00a0<\/em><em>&#8220;<\/em><em>The Truth about Codependency<\/em><em>&#8221;\u00a0<\/em><em><a href=\"https:\/\/wakeuprecovery.com\/codependency-quiz\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/wakeuprecovery.com\/codependency-quiz\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1576856392486000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFpcKrStgW4-Zp5K9V-keZMPRnaTQ\">https:\/\/<wbr \/>wakeuprecovery.com\/<wbr \/>codependency-quiz\/<\/a>\u00a0<\/em><em>Sherry maintains a private practice in Westlake Village, and is a sought after\u00a0<\/em><em>transformationn and recovery<\/em><em>\u00a0<\/em><em>coach. For more information visit\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/u6763182.ct.sendgrid.net\/wf\/click?upn=-2FIQcnM36UjadL4LdS3XoqzQOSQbpuMxSJL9zXjrYax-2F1HHR6iBjamIPN5yEXjazk_izJavaOg5-2FrHZpqh4RKhjT-2FW0yvWSy-2BZnj0kV-2B0juESe9oSBe-2FKMF5Pjs1b09cm7LzgF2Rf3F93qM5p1FTuJR809ncgvarrNsjLOa2kPQt-2BXCjicMOPsAOLKecysbTVuKvGP-2FsfpGDxoenp8mTI5umEopOvOODbakQ5QJp60iC6fHLqjRk8Mde39kjaKFbOpWblnHNatgu22pXSkAst2qDrXEyXabFDXbVT6x-2FwiHTPGQQVU3J84VlEdB-2FOwTHA84FGP1ixfVFqCimo-2BuQ0UZA-3D-3D\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/u6763182.ct.sendgrid.net\/wf\/click?upn%3D-2FIQcnM36UjadL4LdS3XoqzQOSQbpuMxSJL9zXjrYax-2F1HHR6iBjamIPN5yEXjazk_izJavaOg5-2FrHZpqh4RKhjT-2FW0yvWSy-2BZnj0kV-2B0juESe9oSBe-2FKMF5Pjs1b09cm7LzgF2Rf3F93qM5p1FTuJR809ncgvarrNsjLOa2kPQt-2BXCjicMOPsAOLKecysbTVuKvGP-2FsfpGDxoenp8mTI5umEopOvOODbakQ5QJp60iC6fHLqjRk8Mde39kjaKFbOpWblnHNatgu22pXSkAst2qDrXEyXabFDXbVT6x-2FwiHTPGQQVU3J84VlEdB-2FOwTHA84FGP1ixfVFqCimo-2BuQ0UZA-3D-3D&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1576856392486000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFQHoOp0XP7C2RgJbNl3aZ2d3mQyg\">www.sherrygaba.com<\/a>\u00a0or<\/em><em>\u00a0<wbr \/>sign up today for Sherr<\/em><em>y&#8217;s\u00a0<\/em><em>online group coaching program<\/em><em>\u00a0for codependents<\/em><em>\u00a0for $19\/month\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/wakeuprecovery.com\/become-a-member-co\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/wakeuprecovery.com\/become-a-member-co\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1576856392486000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFk8sb1eb7TPIDbm1nfq_5pMlhcRA\">https:\/\/<wbr \/>wakeuprecovery.com\/become-a-<wbr \/>member-co\/<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Most of the time, love addicts are very susceptible to dating anyone who they are attracted to and who shows some interest in them. Because they are love addicts and feel they need romantic love to be happy, they will settle for less than what they want. They will allow themselves to keep dating someone&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":402,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1347","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Love Addiction and Dating with a Purpose - The Celebrity Therapist<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/thecelebritytherapist\/2019\/12\/love-addiction-and-dating-with-a-purpose.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Love Addiction and Dating with a Purpose - The Celebrity Therapist\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Most of the time, love addicts are very susceptible to dating anyone who they are attracted to and who shows some interest in them. Because they are love addicts and feel they need romantic love to be happy, they will settle for less than what they want. They will allow themselves to keep dating someone&hellip;\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/thecelebritytherapist\/2019\/12\/love-addiction-and-dating-with-a-purpose.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Celebrity Therapist\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-12-19T18:02:40+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/wp-media.beliefnet.com\/sites\/243\/2018\/07\/wine-300x200.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Sherry Gaba\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Love Addiction and Dating with a Purpose - The Celebrity Therapist","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/thecelebritytherapist\/2019\/12\/love-addiction-and-dating-with-a-purpose.html","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Love Addiction and Dating with a Purpose - The Celebrity Therapist","og_description":"Most of the time, love addicts are very susceptible to dating anyone who they are attracted to and who shows some interest in them. 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