“Taking the time to really work through the stuff that you’ve been left with from the past helps you to wipe the slate clean and get back to a good foundation of being happy and healthy within yourself,” Owen explains. “You need two happy, healthy people to make a happy, healthy relationship.”

2. Ask questions instead of making assumptions

When you’ve had a bad experience in the past, it’s easy to make assumptions based on how your previous partner behaved. To avoid this, Owen recommends approaching your date with an open and curious mind.

“Asking questions instead of making assumptions allows you to make sure that you’re responding to what’s really happening in the moment rather than letting it be tainted by an experience from the past,” Owen explains.

3. Adopt a growth mindset

Once you’ve given yourself enough time to deal with the emotional fallout of a relationship, adopting a growth mindset – an approach that acknowledges that things don’t always go right but that those moments are an opportunity to make progress – will help you to feel more positive and motivated going forward.

“Try to see your past relationship as a life lesson – you’ll have learned from it,” Owen says. “It can really tell you what you want from the future and what you’re willing and absolutely not willing to put up with, and that will empower you and make you feel stronger.”

4. Practise mindfulness

Because emotional baggage can often lead you to live in the past and ponder on the things that went wrong in your previous relationship, practising mindfulness is a good way to bring your attention back to the present moment.

Emotional baggage: how to avoid carrying experiences from your past relationships into a new one