Kenneth Glad
Established routines can be difficult to leave even after circumstances change. A company-commissioned poll has explored that reluctance through questions about relationships and possessions.
Hope that circumstances will improve is one reason people give for remaining in relationships they later believe lasted too long.
In SharkNinja-commissioned polling reported by the Daily Express, 63% of respondents who said they had stayed in a romantic relationship longer than necessary cited hopes that things would improve. Another 33% pointed to fear of change.
An SWNS report carried by Yahoo News said 2,000 adults took part in the survey. Fewer meaningful conversations came out as the leading warning sign, followed by choosing to scroll through a phone rather than talk and spending more time watching TV in separate rooms.
Other answers painted a similar picture. Some respondents mentioned sleeping apart, giving up activities they once enjoyed together and making less of an effort with date nights.
The Gottman Institute has written about what it calls “bids for connection”, the small moments when one partner tries to get the other’s attention. Its research says that repeatedly ignoring those attempts can leave couples feeling more distant over time.
The campaign changes direction
Olivia Attwood, the British television personality who first became widely known through Love Island, fronted a video for the campaign. It opens like a serious break-up conversation, only for the punchline to reveal that she has been talking to a microwave.
Attwood said: “The fact that so many people have owned a microwave for longer than a relationship shows just how attached we become to things we’re familiar with. As much as I see the value in holding onto things that have served us for long periods of time, it’s so important to upgrade certain elements of our lives.”
The habit of holding on does not limit itself to relationships. People also admitted keeping old cables, paperwork, clothes that no longer fitted and sentimental notes long after they had stopped being useful.
Some belongings even became an issue after a split. Televisions, gaming consoles and microwaves were among the household items former couples had argued over.
Nearly half, 47%, said they had owned a microwave for longer than one of their romantic relationships, while 36% were still using one they believed was no longer doing a particularly good job.
Source: The Daily Express, Yahoo News, YouTube, Gottman Institute
