Trying to hold down a relationship or marriage in isn’t easy.

No one ever said relationships are easy 100 percent of the time. Joining the lives of two people is almost always an exercise in patience, trust, and honesty — which aren’t traits that come easily to everyone. In fact, many of us engage in habits that can be damaging to our relationships, oftentimes without even knowing it.

Which is, of course, totally human. As long as you learn from your mistakes and make an effort to change, they aren’t usually the end of the world. However, if you make relationship mistakes on the regular (think lying, cheating, keeping secrets) and make zero effort to clean up your ways, you can reasonably expect the whole thing to go up in smoke. In order to have a healthy thing going on, you’ll both need to make an effort to avoid sh*tty relationship pitfalls.

Nobody enjoys discussing hurt feelings, awkward financial topics, future mother-in-laws, or anything else that might bring on that squirm in your chest. But healthy relationships understand that it’s not an option — it’s a requirement, say experts. If relationships are going to stand the test of time, they need to leave the door open to almost every conversation imaginable.

This requires a deep sense of trust, so work on building that early and often in order to reach this level of openness with your partner. And, while you’re at it, read on for some habits you should definitely avoid.

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Here are the 7 top worst relationships of all time.

Elizabeth Taylor & Richard Burton

Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton’s marriage is legendary for how turbulent it was. After all, they did divorce only to get married again. When they fell in love the first time, they were both married to other people, and according to some journalists, at the time, Elizabeth was known for having tantrums, and Richard was reportedly an alcoholic. Their second marriage didn’t last long, because of how frequently they fought.

Courtney Love & Kurt Cobain

Kurt and Courtney’s volatile relationship began in the early ’90s. When things began, Courtney told the press that a lot of drugs were involved. They did try to get clean for the sake of their daughter, Frances Bean, but ultimately, Kurt ended up dying from a self-inflicted gunshot wound in 1994, just two years after he and Courtney were married. So tragic.

Anjelica Huston & Jack Nicholson

In her memoir, Watch Me, Anjelica opened up about how she’d caught Jack cheating on her during their 17-year relationship (she found items belonging to other women in their home). She had also told Jack that she’d wanted to get married, but he brushed off the idea. Finally, it ended when one of the women he was seeing became pregnant.

OJ Simpson & Nicole Brown Simpson

OJ and Nicole’s relationship is famous for the murder trial that ensued after she was found dead. Ultimately, OJ was found not guilty, but people have their doubts. However, the trial did reveal that OJ had abused Nicole, with graphic photos of her injuries shared for all to see.

Johnny Depp & Amber Heard

Johnny and Amber’s relationship was an extremely volatile one. At the time that they split in 2016, Amber accused him of abusing her during a fight, claiming that he’d hit her in the face with a phone, and that he had emotionally and physically abused her throughout their entire marriage. In 2019, paperwork obtained by the press stated Johnny denied these claims, saying that it had actually been Amber who abused him. It’s not clear what the truth is just yet, but either way, it’s pretty obvious this was a toxic relationship.

Britney Spears and Kevin Federline

We all knew the marriage between Britney and her back-up dancer K-Fed wouldn’t end well. Britney Spears and Kevin Federline have certainly had their ups and downs since splitting in November 2006. The former couple, who tied the knot in 2004 and share sons Sean Preston and Jayden, have gone from feuding exes to supportive co-parents.

The pair wed only a few short months together. And welcoming their sons back-to-back sure did not help. Everyone’s favorite IT pop queen quickly went into a downward spiral, which climaxed with her damaging a paparazzi car and shaving her head.

Angelina Jolie & Billy Bob Thornton

When Billy Bob and Angelina first got together in 2000, they were known for their quick, passionate love — and the fact that they wore vials of each other’s blood around their necks. But they only stayed married for three years, and in 2018, he told some reporter that they would stayed together if what they wanted out of life wasn’t so different. 

“We just had different lifestyles,” he said. “Hers is a global lifestyle and mine is an agoraphobic lifestyle. So that’s really, that’s the only reason we’re probably not still together, maybe. There was a different path in life we wanted to take.”