Psychologist warns saying 'toxic' phrase to your partner can cause 'irreparable' damage to your relationship

A psychologist has warned about the one toxic phrase that can cause irreparable damage to your relationship.

We all know there are certain things you shouldn't say in an argument. After all, everybody says stuff they regret in the heat of the moment, but there are certain things that cannot be unsaid - no matter how tense the argument.

Now, one expert has explained that couples could entirely ruin their relationship by saying one particular 'toxic' phrase.

There's one phrase that could cause irreparable damage to your relationship (Getty Stock Photo)

Dr Mark Travers says he's noticed that there's always one phrase that often crops up when couples are having a difficult time - and it's all to do with comparison.

As we know, comparison is the thief of joy, after all.

"There's one phrase I've seen come up in these exchanges that's more damaging than you think: 'Why can't you be more like [insert other person's name]'?"

Dr Travers calls this the 'death by comparison'. Writing for CNBC Make It, he added: "The real message will always remain the same: 'You're not enough, and someone else - anyone else - could do a better job at being my partner.'"

Travers says in a healthy relationship, couples should communicate 'without shame or comparison' adding: "Relationships require the willingness to love each other as real, flawed, irreplaceable humans - not as comparisons to someone else."

Comparison can be 'toxic' in relationships (Getty Stock Photo)

According to another expert, there's one clear sign that signals the end of most relationships.

In a Reddit thread titled 'What screams 'we are not going to last long' for couples?', users discussed the point in a relationship where there's no going back.

One person shared an insight that a marriage counsellor had told them.

They wrote: "I was at a party one time and there was a marriage counsellor there that had been working for 20-something years in couples counselling. I asked her what the number one sign was that the couple wasn't going to make it.

"Without hesitating, she said, 'If one person shows contempt for the other's feelings, it's over!'"

Another expert has explained the sign that signals the end of most relationships (Getty Stock Photo)

Others shared their own views, with one writing: "I think when you just don't care anymore. You don't care to fight with them. You don't care to be intimate. You don't care to make an effort."

Another said: "Asking friends if they think you should break up. At least for me this means you've made the decision you just want it backed up by someone."

And a third added: "If you find yourself fantasising about being single again. Your gut is right more often than you think."