When you give your partner the silent treatment, you choose to be mute and refuse to communicate your feeling when you are hurt or unhappy or discontented about something.
In romantic relationships it is a method of psychological punishment and manipulation that many partners have used or experienced at some point, whether or not they were aware of it.
But here’s the thing about blatantly ignoring your partner when they try to communicate with you: it’s immature, inconsiderate, cruel, and it’s downright emotionally damaging.
And here are reasons why you should absolutely avoid treating your partner this way:
1. It destroys the communication in your relationship
A relationship where issues do not get discussed is not a healthy one and you do not need this.
Instead of clamping up and denying your partner the opportunity of clarifying situations, it is better to tell them to give you a bit of time.
And make sure you do not let it drag on for too long. Don’t let communication in your relationship suffer such destructive hits.
2. It brings about resentment
If you constantly resort to withdrawing into a shell when something happens in your relationship, you’re indirectly telling your partner that communication with them is not worth it.
And imagine being in a relationship with someone whose way of dealing with issues is to sulk and refuse to say anything for days on end.
Such behaviour leads to resentment. Undiscussed issues that leave room for resentment to grow.
3. The intimacy in your relationship suffers
It goes without saying that a relationship wherein one partner is resentful and the other refuses to communicate will suffer in intimacy.
When partners begin to resent each other, it is not out of place that the intimacy in the relationship begins to suffer [Source: Madamenoire]
4. It’s actually a form of emotional abuse
The act has been severally classified as a way of emotionally abusing your partner.
American Therapist, Dr Kurt Smith writes on this and says
“If you need to remain quiet for management of your anger, then staying silent is being smart.
“What separates the silent treatment from a good conflict management skill is the intent behind it and how long it lasts.
“When it’s used to hurt or punish, then it’s bad. When it goes past a few hours, which is long enough for all of us to cool down and get past any hurt feelings, then it can become abusive.”
All in all, disputes in relationships are not avoidable but properly managing these disputes with communication and positive actions will help build better, stronger bonds.