When one partner cheats, the other may end the relationship, or forgive and stay in it, but either way, extra-marital affairs have major, negative effects that can be felt for some time, or forever, such as: Damage to self esteem The person who has been cheated on experiences a blow to his (or her) self-esteem and may think “Was I not enough?” or “If I hadn’t let myself go, this would not have happened”. Just as children tend to blame themselves for their parents’ divorce, many victims of an affair respond by blaming themselves. The decision to cheat was not yours, and although there may have been problems in the relationship, you did not make the decision to have an affair. Chances are, it had much more to do with a deficiency or weakness in your partner than in you. Lack of trust Victims of an affair will find it difficult to trust again and may doubt their judgment of other people. Even if a relationship ends, and another begins, the mechanism of infidelity can follow. It is...