Lately, the quote, "We accept the love we think we deserve", has been consuming my mind with confusion and, honestly, rage as well. I'm just trying to understand how people can stay with someone who treats them as bad as they do, and I'm starting to realize it's all because of their misconstrued idea of love.

So, let's understand that this has a lot to do with people feeling as though they need someone. Basically, a person becomes a necessity for them, like food or water is for survival. To put a man or woman on this pedestal isn't necessarily love, though. Sadly, this is just a sign of a mental illness that is already there.

You were born with just yourself, maybe a twin, so what makes you think that you won't be able to live without someone? The fear of being alone is a strange concept because you are brought into this world alone, and you will most likely die alone, so why let someone treat you like less than human just to avoid feeling alone?

Wouldn't feeling alone be better than constantly feeling emotionally drained from the leach that has attached themselves to you? When you reach this state of connectedness, when will you finally decide to let go? When do you finally realize that enough is enough, and you don't deserve to be used as someone's relentless crutch?

I don't know how my parents found the strength to give up on each other, honestly. I thought their love would literally kill one of them, it was bad. So, when your kids see how bad it is and have thoughts like this, what makes you think that staying with this person is healthy?

Whether it's emotional abuse, physical abuse, cheating, etc., can you find the strength to move on?

Self-worth plays a big part in what we think we deserve. If you think you're not worthy of love, finding someone with an interest in you becomes all you can think about every night and day. This feeling makes you take whatever crap is given to you because you're just happy that someone wants you.

However, most people in your life think you're worthy of so much more than that kind of love.

People around you truly love you and don't understand why you continue to stay with a leach that doesn't actually give a damn about you. Let's think about it. Does someone who claims they love you really want to hit you, cheat on you, or scream until you cry every day?

I understand that things are always different looking in from the outside, but that can't possibly be love from my eyes.

The quote, "We accept the love we think we deserve", stands strong. The only difference now is that you know exactly what you don't deserve.