Outside Factors That'll Make You More Likely to Break up ...

It's a major problem if his family don't like you, or yours hate him. However loyal he is to you, you're going to get fed up with being treated like an outsider whenever you see his relatives. Some families are even actively hostile and rude to your face. Would you want to bring your children in that kind of atmosphere?

Two people from different religious backgrounds can make a relationship work, providing each is respectful of the other's faith. But it can also create divisions in the relationship, especially if your community expects you to marry within the faith, and the situation gets even more complicated if you have children. So if you date outside your faith be prepared for the possibility of a negative response.

Whatever movies, books and songs say, someone else cannot ruin a relationship single-handed. But the presence of a third party can cause ructions. If your partner has a clingy ex or an eye for other girls, it's going to create a rift between you that the other person can widen, whether or not they intend to.

We all understand the need to commit to your work, and the importance that career has for some people. But a very demanding job soon begins to affect someone's personal life. If one of you is always being called into work at short notice, expected to work a lot of overtime, or to take work home, it's bound to make the other partner feel neglected.

Friends may also (rightly or wrongly) not be keen on your partner, and it can have an effect on your relationship. You're likely to sense that they don't like him. If he has single friends who always want him to party with them, that can also cause issues and make you feel resentful.

People do happily date someone with children from a previous relationship, but there's no denying that building a step-family takes a lot of work. They have to put their children first before you, and the children may not be happy that their father is dating again. Or the ex may be jealous and try to come between you. It's certainly going to be hard work.

There can also be issues if you're compared unfavorably to your partner's ex. This can often happen if his family thought she was wonderful and would rather he'd never split up from her. You end up wondering why they're still not together, if she was so perfect, and getting mad at the constant comparisons to this 'wonderful' woman who should be in the past.

However, you shouldn't assume that your relationship is doomed if any of these factors are present. They will undoubtedly complicate your life, but if your relationship is strong it's possible to overcome them. Have you ever had a third party interfere in or break up your relationship?