Best Relationship Advice "If You Leave Me Now" Chicago, 1976

by LaDena Kailing Garr, Certified Life Coach since 2011

Author

LaDena Kailing Garr
July 02, 2025

Fun fact, find the answer at the bottom of this email.

Chicago hit a milestone with this song. What milestone was it?

Feel-Good Relationship Advice from the Greatest Love Songs!

A love like ours is a love that’s hard to find

For those who need healing or they will lose this love

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Read time: 5 minutes

Lyrics

If you leave me now
You'll take away the biggest part of me
Ooh-ooh, no, baby, please don't go
And if you leave me now
You'll take away the very heart of me
Ooh-ooh, no, baby, please don't go
Ooh-ooh, girl, I just want you to stay

In this song, the singer, Peter Cetera, is pleading with his lover not to leave, expressing the fear and devastation that would come with being separated.

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If you cannot tolerate a loved one’s behavior, you might become so exasperated that you see no way out other than to leave. But there is another way. You can practice loving detachment.

Step 1. Don’t make the other person’s problem your problem.

Step 2. Learn to separate your emotions from those of your loved one.

Step 3. No fixing or giving unsolicited advice.

Step 4. Stop trying to get your needs met by this person.

Step 5. Set clear boundaries and stand by them.

Step 6. Nurture your own life purpose and meaning in life independent of your loved one.

by Hal Shorey, Ph.D. Psychology Today, “Why you don’t have to abandon difficult relationships”

Loving Detachment is much more challenging in a committed romantic relationship, but not impossible. If this resonates with you, you may want to seek the guidance of a professional in order to define what this looks like in your relationship.

Lyrics

A love like ours is love that's hard to find
How could we let it slip away?
We've come too far to leave it all behind
How could we end it all this way?
When tomorrow comes and we'll both regret
The things we said today

Initially, I’ve stayed away from sad love songs, but I do realize that there is so much to glean from heartache and stressful relationships.

This song is mesmerizing.

The Guardian noted, “If you leave me now” is impossibly lush and beautifully written but it’s sadness is pervasive and affecting”.

In 2016, entertainment and pop culture writer Troy L. Smith stated, "If You Leave Me Now" is listed in his list of seven Chicago songs that "kill any doubt about their candidacy", and said, "... it's a key contributor to the band's fame and, thus, its Rock Hall induction. And while we're being honest, Peter Cetera delivers, hands down, the best vocal performance of any Chicago song."

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Comfort Theory states that people get worried when we perceive that our comforts might get taken away from us. A lot of people are afraid of love and intimacy. Your precious heart is now in the hands of another human being that you don’t have control over. You are extremely vulnerable. It is a scary thing.

My late husband, Mark Kailing, PsD, Author of “The Sacred Art of Living through Self-Mastery”
Think about this…

How have you navigated a crossroads in your relationship?

How have you navigated hurtful things said to one another that you both regret?

Key Take Aways

  • You can practice Loving Detachment.

  • Romantic relationship leave us feeling very vulnerable, but it is necessary in creating a deep connection.

  • Being completely open and honest with one another can lead to healing.

Fun Fact Trivia:

Chicago hit a milestone with this song. What milestone was it?

Answer: Chicago had their first #1 hit in the US and the UK with “If you leave me now” topping the charts in 1976.

Fun Fact: Something new! Coming soon! Watch for it right here!

In 2024 I started this newsletter, and in only a few months it has grown to 1500 subscribers. I sincerely thank you for being here!

In 2025 I am working, along with the most amazing minds I’ve encountered, to create an online course for those that value romance.

We invest in what we value the most. I help busy, overwhelmed adults in loving relationships, who feel their romantic connection has become routine, go from feeling taken for granted and emotionally distant to experiencing exciting intimacy, deeper connection and romance fulfillment.

This transformation ensures they thrive with support, enduring romantic expression, and enriching their overall life satisfaction.

The Remarkable Romance Program, release date coming in 2025
Love is the greatest adventure!

~LaDena

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