Getting Back With Your Ex: Can It Work?

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So, can on-again-off-again relationships ever be successful? Or is getting back with your ex hopeless? There is actually some data available about this. And it isn’t exactly promising for anyone considering taking back the ex. Still, sometimes, that rare couple can make it work. Here’s what we know about exes getting back together – why it happens, does it work, and why it works when it does.

Statistics On Getting Back With An Ex

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Many analysts, therapists and researchers have studied the phenomena of the on-again-off-again relationship. Here are some of the important findings:

• There’s a (nearly) 50/50 chance it works. Ex Back Permanently conducted a survey of over 3,000 individuals who’d broken up with an ex and wanted to get them back. Of those who did get back with their ex, about half of them broke up again.
• It probably won’t be a great relationship. According to research from the American Psychological Association, people who get back with an ex are less likely to report positive relationship traits (love, trust, understanding) and more likely to support negative experiences (like communication issues and uncertainty).
• Your chances are better if you’re older. The Ex Back Permanently survey also found that people over the age of 50 had much better success rates when getting back with and staying with an ex compared to younger individuals. Chalk it up to knowing who you are and what you want – and being better at communicating that.
• Self–improvement is key. Here’s another critical piece of the puzzle: of all the factors that could contribute to relationship success in getting back with an ex, self-improvement is the most powerful. (Which would explain why being older correlates with more relationship success with an ex). Time apart and no contact were the next two top factors, which shows that taking some real time to reflect is important.