More and more people are getting connected on the internet. The widespread use of the internet, especially social media, has tremendously changed very many aspects of people’s lives- especially how people celebrate important milestones in life. For instance, rarely do people celebrate a special moment without letting their friends in social media know the details of the event. You must have observed that whenever a person gets engaged, there is always a Facebook relationship status update accompanied with beautiful engagement photos.

Unknown to a lot of people, social media can also ruin your relationship or marriage in surprising ways. In fact, there are very many research reports that prove beyond any shadow of doubt that social media does more harm than good to couples in relationships or in marriages.

Here are some ways social media can be toxic to your relationship:

You Are Checking His Account Too Often

It is understandable that your man occupies your mind throughout. But that is exactly what will compel you to keep checking his account just in case. For example, you might be wondering if your significant other accepted a friend request from an ex-girlfriend, or if any family member or friend posted anything you should beware of. When you two have a fight, you might be afraid that your significant other might post an angry tweet about you, or if he mentions you in a post but didn’t tag you. To allay all these fears you’ll feel like it is necessary to check your significant other’s account.

But it does not have to be that way all the time. Agree with your partner, if this is a problem, all your issues should be solved offline, and that you two shouldn’t let the world into your domestic quarrels and disagreements. Complaining about your significant other on social media is a terrible and it’s a bad way to vent out feelings. It is noteworthy that if you are worried about flirty friends or exes, this is probably not the best way to go about easing the problem. You ought to work together as a couple so as to address all these problems offline.

Getting Upset When Your Partner Doesn’t Post Pictures of You Two As a Couple

There are individuals who get upset when they feel that their partner does not want to let the world know that he is engaged, in a relationship, or married. You look around and see all your girlfriends being appreciated in social media by their boyfriends and you wonder why your boyfriend isn’t appreciating you as well. So you resolve on your own to post a cute couple picture, but your partner chooses not to like, or reciprocate with a similar update, and you feel bad. All manner of thoughts encroach the mind: you might start thinking he is not proud of you, or he probably isn’t very faithful. However, you should remember that some people highly value their privacy and do not want strangers to know some things about their private lives. Therefore, just because your significant other is not splashing those cute couple pictures on Facebook does not mean he is not into you anymore.

The Partner Does Not Divulge His Login Details

Another cause of friction in relationships is the reluctance of a partner to divulge his login details. Well, it is important to respect one another’s boundaries, but secrecy is often a recipe for insecurity and other trust issues in the relationship. You guys need to sit down, if this is an issue, and agree if you are going to be completely transparent with each other or otherwise.

You Can Get Worried When Your Man is Spending Too Much Time on Social Media

It is common to see people check their phones now and again for new notifications. And of late, social networking sites have become just as addictive as sports or video games. Therefore, it is important to set limits on how much time you are going to spend on social media sites, just as you would set time for any other activity. Create time for each other, and honor that time by giving a wide berth to social networking sites. Never let social media take the center stage of your life.

Some Partners May Get Paranoid Over What their Significant Other is Sharing Online

Your partner could also get uncomfortable over what you share online. Maybe you posted a silly photo and mentioned something inappropriate about your relationship. If this is an enduring problem in your relationship, you two could probably work a way of checking with each other before anyone of you posts any images or information to social media.

An Ex Stalking You

Everyone has a past, so the adage goes. You also have this ex, and you have completely got over him. Unbeknownst to you is that he usually stalks your every move via social media. For example, you might announce that you are going to some event with your current boyfriend, your ex may also choose to RSVP himself to the same event to make you feel too awkward to go.

Haunted by a Sordid Past

In the past, you might have gone on a hedonistic summer break with some of your homies and brothers. While there you did some things that you weren’t so proud of. But then you took it in stride and moved on to some better things- like meeting your current man. And that could all be forgotten if some friend nostalgic of those hedonistic times didn’t rummage through his archives and find that incriminating picture you have completely forgotten about. Your friend has no worry of the picture floating around on the interwebs and she assumes you also don’t mind. So she tags you, and the first person to see the picture is your significant other. That one is a recipe for trouble.

Misconstruing Meaningless Flirtations

You might get a verbal lashing, and sometimes break up, over some seemingly innocuous interactions you have in social media. He might not like it that you are liking, favoriting, or making some comments under some random hot acquaintance’s pictures.

Social Media Can Rob you of Some Mystique

Some people share too much about themselves on social media. The effect of that is that it robs you of some mystique because after sharing so much information in social media there will be little to talk about when you are with your significant other as you already divulged everything on social media.

Social Media can also Expose Your Relationship to Hate

There are many people who are envious of your relationship and don’t want to see it succeed. They may devise ways to weaken or destroy the relationship by capitalizing on what either of you reveals on social media.