Playing Nice with Your Ex: Here's How

They say that breaking up is hard to do -- and for good reason. The emotional pain of a split can last for years, and if you have mutual friends, children or live in the same area, those lasting wounds can be opened time and time again. While the thought of them may make your skin crawl, being civil and even nice to your ex can be beneficial for many reasons.

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It's not going to be easy or fun and it won't happen overnight, but you can rebuild an amicable, or at least tolerable, relationship with your ex if you both work at it. So how do you stop from wanting to kill each other to singing "Kumbaya"? We break down the best ways to get on better terms with your ex.

Try not to take everything your ex says or does personally - Whether it's smearing you at the local coffee shop, "losing" your favorite sweater that was left behind or showing up at a party with that girl you hate - take it with a grain of salt. Adapting the "sticks and stones may break my bones" mentality can be tricky if things are still fresh and ended on a sour note. Just keep that chin up and your mouth shut until he realizes he's not getting anywhere.