Love, as we know it, is a very difficult and confusing emotion to understand. Love, more often than not, tends to be mistaken for lust. Sometimes, it’s hard to completely tell the difference between the two. People romanticize love to be this all-consuming feeling that sometimes, we think lust – which is similar in emotional responses as love – is actually love. However, love radiates true happiness and most importantly, allows you to feel comfortable with yourself and your partner; whereas lust does not. When you are able to distinguish the difference between love and lust, there is no comparison to how great love really feels over lust.
1.
You’re In Lust When:
You feel like you have to “dress to impress” every time you are seeing your person.
You’re In Love When:
You feel comfortable in “sweatpants, hair tied, chilling with no makeup on” all the time.
Being in love brings that sense of comfort in yourself and in your relationship. You know when you are in love because you feel comfortable being in comfortable wearing anything – like sweats –without worrying that your significant other is going to leave you for the girl dressed to the nines next door. You feel like you have to dress to impress when it’s lust because you’re not trusting or sure of where things are going. When its love, you know you don’t have to impress anyone.
2.
You’re In Lust When:
You always feel like you have to tell your significant other what they want to hear in order to keep them around.
You’re In Love When:
You feel confident saying whatever it is that you want, and sharing your views and opinions with your significant other.
The thing about love is that when you are in it, you know that there is nothing you can say that will make the person you are with love you any less. You know that your significant other loves you for you and all that you believe in – especially your mind. You don’t have to say things to string your significant other along and keep them with you. There’s no lying between you, no sugarcoating.
3.
You’re In Lust When:
You don’t know much about their life before you.
You’re In Love When:
You know everything about their past, their family, and their history.
A relationship filled with love is one that is an open book. When it is just lust, you are so protective of the relationship and holding it together on a whim that you don’t even bother to hit the history books on one another. If you don’t know anything personal about your significant other than do you really love them fully for who they truly are? Probably not, and it is probably just lust.
4.
You’re In Lust When:
You look at your significant other as just that, and not your best friend.
You’re In Love When:
You’re significant other has become one of your best friends.
Your significant other becomes a best friend when you are really in love because it happens so naturally. If you do not look at your significant other as your best friend too, it could be because you two are in a relationship that’s surface value or looks. Lust focuses on this, rather than focusing on a future or something sustainable.
5.
You’re In Lust When:
You focus on living in the moment with your significant other and never think about the future.
You’re In Love When:
You think about the future and what your life could really be like together – long term.
When you’re in love with someone, you envision a future together. When you feel love, you want to feel loved forever because once you experience that feeling, there’s no turning back. Therefore you don’t just focus on living in the moment because yes, that is important too but, you think about a life together and things that can happen in the long-run. When you love someone, you value them as a huge part of your life. You don’t only think about how great it is now, but how great it can be forever.