Can a relationship work without trust?

A woman I know recently asked me something that honestly stuck with me. She said, “How am I supposed to be in a relationship when I struggle to trust people in the first place?” Not because her partner was actively cheating or lying. But because every small thing triggered anxiety in her mind. If he replied late, she overthought it. If he seemed distant for a day, she assumed something was wrong. And the sad part is that she was exhausted by her own thoughts too. She didn’t want to feel suspicious all the time, but she also didn’t know how to relax emotionally. I think a lot of people underestimate how much trust affects a relationship. Without trust, even normal situations start feeling threatening. You stop enjoying the relationship naturally. Everything turns into checking, questioning, analyzing, and trying to feel “safe.” And usually trust issues don’t appear out of nowhere. A lot of them come from past betrayal, inconsistent relationships, childhood instability, or being lied to repeatedly. The problem is that unresolved fear from old situations can quietly damage healthy ones too. You start expecting pain before anything bad has even happened. I told her something important though: trust is not blind faith. It’s built slowly through consistency. You don’t magically wake up and trust someone completely. You watch their actions over time and decide whether they feel emotionally safe. But at the same time, healing trust issues also requires internal work. No partner can permanently calm fears that come from deep insecurity or past trauma. That’s why relationships with trust issues often feel emotionally exhausting for both people. One person constantly needs reassurance, and the other feels like they’re always being tested. A healthy relationship needs communication, honesty, and emotional stability from both sides. Not perfection, but enough safety for both people to breathe. Because love without trust eventually turns into stress management. And nobody can feel deeply connected while constantly waiting to get hurt.