When Love Demands Space

There are points in life when love asks something different from you than it once did. When you allow love to expand in the ways it needs to, you recognize that there are moments when the most loving thing you can do is let people go. Maybe not forever but certain seasons may call for you to detach in love to give yourself or others time and space to heal. Perhaps not forever, but only time will ultimately reveal that.

Accepting these shifts, and knowing that space is sometimes necessary depending on the dynamic of the relationship, is critical. That pause can reveal what the relationship has been trying to show you about your needs, your patterns, and your growth. It also gives the other person room to face their own work without leaning on you to hold what isn’t yours.

Since people are our greatest spiritual teachers, there are always lessons held within each relationship, especially the ones that challenge us the most. Sometimes we believe those challenges are signs that a person was never meant to be in our lives. But the reality is that the challenge, mixed with the beauty and joy the relationship brought, is part of the full picture. Challenge shows us parts of ourselves we don’t see when things feel easy. It brings the unconscious known - our deepest fears to the surface. Those who stretch us often highlight the places where healing is ready to rise. This doesn’t mean the connection is wrong. It means it touched something deep enough to matter.

And if we’re fortunate to have relationships where no conflict has ever come to the surface then we have to know that we’re quite rare. Because 99% of the time, whether we confront the conflict or not, conflict is constantly present in relationships, and the more that we can face it and work our best to navigate through it, the more that the relationship can serve as a balm to our rising. When we meet conflict with honesty instead of avoidance, it creates space for clarity and connection. It allows both people to grow instead of shrinking around the tension. This is where relationships become steady, not because they avoid hard moments, but because they move through those moments with care.

Sometimes our rising and theirs requires us to let go and allow space to be the healing foundation until, in divine time, you’re meant to come back together. Letting go becomes the moment you trust what you can’t see yet. It becomes the invitation for growth to unfold on its own timeline. And if life brings you back to each other, you come back wiser, clearer, and more aligned. If it doesn’t, your rising continues anyway. The love shaped you, and the space carried you forward towards more light.

These themes are at the center of my new book, Love Will Liberate, coming early 2026. It will explore the power of love in all forms including the most important love, which is with yourself. In the meantime if you haven't grabbed a copy yet, I’m offering a 20% discount on Me Too: A Therapist’s Journey to Heal, Find Liberation & Joy starting November 24, along with 40% off all Be Well Beautiful merch. Give yourself the gift of love and wellbeing this season. And if you need support in working through relationship changes, you can explore coaching, therapy, and more with me here.

With immense love & light,

Demarra West