You may be asking yourself, “how long does it take to get over a break up?” This is a very common question among those who are just now experiencing a break up and want to move on with their lives but feel overwhelmed by the pain of the break up and unable to move forward.
The good news is that it may not take you long to get over your break up at all. The bad news is that it could take quite a while. Chances are that you’ll never be completely over someone you loved deeply but you will eventually reach a point where you can move forward with your life. That is what most people seek and are asking about when asking “how long does it take to get over a break up?”

So, what are the contributing factors that impact how long it might take you to recover from a break up?

1)   Length of the relationship. It’s true that the longer the relationship lasted the longer it is likely to take you to get over the break up and move on with your life. There are exceptions to every rule of course and mitigating circumstances that may have a direct impact on how easily you are able to move forward once the relationship has ended. In most cases the break up of a 20 year marriage is going to have a more lasting impact and be more difficult to get over than a week long fling while on vacation in some tropical locale.

2)   Level of emotional bond. Unfortunately, this can be quite one-sided in some relationships. If you have a deep bond for your former partner and their emotional bond or commitment to you was not as deep then you can have some serious healing to do once the relationship has ended. Even if there are other circumstances at play (not all relationships end due to lack of love on either side of the relationship after all) the depth of that emotion will play a critical role in how quickly you recover and are able to get over a break up.

3)   Trauma of the break up. Many people who wonder “how long does it take to get over a break up?” were completely blind-sided by the break up. They simply did not see it coming. This meant that they didn’t have the opportunity for those self preserving instincts to kick in and guard their hearts before the fateful moment came. Those who are completely unprepared for a breakup are often the very ones that suffer most and longest when the time comes.

4)   Support system. This is one of the most important factors in a speedier recovery from a break up. Those who have a solid support system of family and friends in place and lean on them during this tough time are most likely to recover faster and never need to ask “how long does it take to get over a break up?”