Rebuilding a relationship after someone has been unfaithful can prove to be quite difficult, relationship expert Claire Rénier has warned after an Olympian made it public that he'd cheated on his girlfriend.
Norweigan Sturla Holm Lægreid won bronze for his country at the Winter Olympics for the biathlon, but it isn't his medal that has got people talking but his very candid revelation about his relationship.
He said that 'six months ago' he met 'the love of [his] life' but their romance came to an abrupt end after he cheated on her three months later.
Lægreid called it the 'biggest mistake' of his life. Later reflecting on his declaration made on live TV, the athlete said he hopes that his ex will now know how much she means to him.
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His ex has since reacted to his honesty about his infidelity and she admitted that it's 'hard to forgive'.
She told VG: "It hurts to have to be in it. We have had contact and he is aware of my opinions on this."
Now Claire Rénier, a relationship expert at real-life dating app happn, has weighed in on it all and shared some advice to Lægreid where she warned that it won't be the easiest of paths to follow should the couple decide to reconcile.
Speaking to UNILAD, she warned: "If they do eventually end up back together, he needs to remember that cheating is often something that can bring relationships to an end in the long run. His history of cheating, even if it just happened once, indicates that he is willing to venture outside of his relationship’s boundaries to serve his own desires, and there’s no guarantee he won’t do it again.
"His partner knowing this could result in constant feelings of suspicion and insecurity on her part, and fairly so."
Rénier went on: "It’s also likely that both his and her friends and family may be less supportive of the relationship, as they’ll want to avoid further heartbreak for them both.
"Getting back together with his ex may also result in some other emotional impacts. For him, this could be constant guilt and a need to prove himself and his love for her, while for her this could be feelings of low self esteem and confidence, insecurity about the relationship, as well as anger and resentment for how he treated her."
Elsewhere, Réiner issued advice to people who have cheated on their partners and who plan to make a public declaration of love like Lægreid did.
"While everyone’s relationship is different, I wouldn’t recommend sharing things like infidelity beyond your friends and family," she said.
"Your partner cheating in private is heartbreaking and a complete violation of your trust. For this to happen publicly with the world’s eyes on it can bring forth feelings of embarrassment and shame, beyond just the emotional turmoil of being betrayed."
Topics: Olympics, Sex and Relationships, Sport
Niamh Shackleton