Healing Stage: How Closure is Essential After a Relationship

The person who came up with the phrase "Need for Closure" is Arie W. Kruglanski, a university professor and a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and the American Psychological Society. He referred to the phrase as the desire of an individual to seek an answer without them living with ambiguity. Closure in a relationship means one has truly accepted that the relationship is over.

Kruglanski says closure allows one to find out why the relationship has ended. Once the answers are said, it'll help them to move on and let go of any lingering emotional issues from the past.

Eric Santos, a contributor to Elite Daily, believes there is no easy way to find closure, considering everyone's experience and relationship are different. Some find closure through themselves, while some find it by asking their former lovers questions they feel need to be asked.

Santos says closure is essential as it makes one accept that things are already over and provides peace of mind, as everyone deserves to know why their relationship ended.

Brains need resolution; thus, closure is important  

Dr. Mariana Bockarova said many of her clients told her their mantra is: "No one can give you closure but yourself," which she thinks is not applicable in a relationship, as not knowing the truth only worsens the situation and can only cause pain and distress to the person seeking for closure.

Many believe that having closure does not work for everyone and would prefer healing on their own, only affecting the two people involved in a relationship, especially the one who needs closure.

Well San Francisco Clinic states that a breakup causes pain and would hurt as one tries to move on, as the brain needs to process things to ultimately move forward healthily. Brains need resolution as the event puzzles it, causing it to seek an answer to the question, 'Why?'

According to the Clinic, closure allows one to process thoughts and feelings for a healthy conclusion and answer the main reason for the relationship ending.

Read Also: Infidelity: Flirting as a Form of Cheating in a Relationship

Why is closure necessary after a broken relationship?

Pam Ramsden, lecturer in Psychology at the University of Bradford, says that when people seek closure, they will find ways to satisfy themselves in a way that would help them to possibly move on as they feel it is a puzzle they need to assemble.

 Although it is important, many can't always get the closure they want as former couples may not agree to it, resulting in one party feeling rejected. However, Sara Makin, founder & CEO of Makin Wellness, says that people who want closure are still emotionally invested in the relationship, which makes it hard for them to heal.

A closure is associated with emotional benefits, Calmerry Blog says.

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