When you have been in a long term relationship for many years, whether you are married or not, you begin to have wandering thoughts and new ideas in your head. You might think of cheating on your better half or getting the courage to propose an open relationship. This is all completely normal so do not feel as though you are an alien for having these thoughts.

The key to saving your marriage or long term relationship is to find the FOUR reasons why people often cheat and how to work on these key factors.

1. EGO

When you have been together for a long time, you know each other all too well. You know what makes the other person happy, sad, angry. When your other half pushed your buttons you may be feeling down about yourself. When you are in this state you may be having thoughts of cheating running through your mind. Most situations like these often lead to infidelity. You may want to get back at them to boost your ego, but this is always the worst way to go about it.

2. BOREDOM

Before you are married you may think of it as a fairytale. You build marriage up to be something magical. After the honeymoon is over you realize that your life hasn't really changed. You find yourself bored doing everyday activities like the laundry, cleaning house, and cooking for your spouse or significant other. The only way to overcome this boredom is to have realistic expectations before you are married.

3. DESERVING

If you are not getting what you need from your relationship then you often think you deserve to find happiness elsewhere. Saying you deserve to cheat is just an excuse. If you are not happy, this is something you need to address with your significant other so that you can work out why you are not happy and try to improve.

4. BODY IMAGE

Everyone is fully conscious of their bodies. Especially as you begin to age, you may not look how you want to. You may be getting wrinkles, going bald, or gaining weight. This could put a strain on a relationship. If you start to get compliments outside of your relationship you may think this could be the only person that finds you attractive and you may wander outside of your relationship. If you do not feel confident about yourself, talk to your better half about it. If your other half feels unattractive, compliment them.

Being in a long term relationship is not a walk in the park. Keeping yourself from cheating is also not very easy. But, now that you have these four key factors you will be able to work through these issues and hopefully save your relationship.