Entering a new relationship can be an exciting and overwhelming experience. In the early stages, everything seems perfect, and the future looks bright. However, it's important to recognize the difference between infatuation and love to make informed decisions about your relationship.

Infatuation is the initial stage of a relationship, where everything feels new and exciting. During this stage, you're often consumed with thoughts of the other person and constantly daydreaming about your future together. Infatuation is based on idealizing the other person, and it can often make you overlook red flags or ignore certain aspects of their personality that don't align with your values or goals.

On the other hand, love is about accepting the other person for who they truly are, with all their flaws and imperfections. Love is a deeper, more profound emotion that involves vulnerability, trust, and mutual respect. It's about being authentic, kind, and patient, and not fearing to be vulnerable with your partner.

While infatuation is all about the fantasy, love is about being real. Infatuation focuses on projecting what we want to see, while love involves accepting what's in front of us. Love is a decision that we make, and it involves accepting and loving someone regardless of the fantasy person we want them to be.

The key difference between infatuation and love is that infatuation is an emotion, while love is an emotion and a decision. With infatuation, you feel a physical and "chemical" attraction to the other person, and your emotions run high. With love, you feel completely supported and comfortable being vulnerable with your partner. Love involves a logical decision to stay and love the person in front of you, even if it means accepting their flaws and imperfections.

In the early stages of a relationship, it's easy to confuse infatuation with love. However, taking the time to understand the difference between the two can help you make more informed decisions about your relationship. It's essential to work on yourself to be healthy, whole, and healed before dating to avoid picking a person based on where you are emotionally and mentally. Acceptance is a crucial component of any healthy relationship, and it involves seeing the other person for who they truly are, not who you want them to be.

Relationships are a combination of healthy infatuation and love. While infatuation can be an exciting and exhilarating experience, it's important to recognise the difference between infatuation and love to make informed decisions about your relationship. Love involves vulnerability, trust, and mutual respect, and it's about accepting the other person for who they truly are, flaws and all. With love, you feel completely supported and able to open up about your deepest dreams and darkest fears. Remember, love is not just an emotion; it's also a decision that we make based on logic, not just emotions.