Here are some common signs you might have trust issues, plus how to deal with them and start taking steps to be a little more trusting. “We all have vulnerabilities from childhood because the human experience if flawed,” Moran adds. For example, “Someone who was raised with a father who was very distant learned this person who was ‘god’—our parents are god to us—isn’t really emotionally available.” And that sticks with us, sometimes forming what’s known as an insecure attachment style. Beurkens adds that trust issues “can also develop as a result of being betrayed or hurt in relationships as an adult, including friends, family members, and/or romantic partners.” As such, infidelity is a common cause of trust issues. Being cheated on, or any number of scenarios that break your trust, can cause attachment injuries, Moran explains. “A real attachment injury ties right to trust: Something happens in the relationship where the hurt partner decides on a certain level, ‘You’re unsafe, and I can never trust you again.’” Moran and Beurkens both note that therapy may be a necessary step if your wounds run deep and trusting is a challenge, “although some people can successfully process past hurts and rebuild trust via books, online support groups, etc.,” Beurkens adds. Mindfulness can be a good practice to help you stay in the present, and “learn to more objectively evaluate what is happening now, and not be swept away emotionally by assumptions,” she says.
