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Emotional recovery following a break-up is an extremely important and fragile process. Keeping contact with an ex, post-separation, can delay emotional recovery and hurt you more than help. The idea that prevents people from breaking complete contact with their ex is that after a love match, for reasons that do not invoke hate or anger, has broken apart, the thought of not speaking with that person ever again is daunting.

Nowadays keeping up with exes and perhaps their new beau/boo is made too easy through social networking sites, where you can update yourself on his or her latest activities without the former significant other knowing about it.  But this, reports researchers (and our common sense), inhibits post-breakup recovery and growth.

"This study sees again virtual life mirroring real life. Just as real life contact with ex-partners may inhibit growth, healing, and well-being, so may virtual contact," says Brenda K. Wiederhold, PhD and Editor-in-Chief of Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, from the Interactive Media Institute, San Diego, CA.

The study collected data from 464 participants to evaluate their Facebook usage and their emotional recovery and personal adjustment following the breakup of a romantic relationship.

Results show that 57 percent of all participants reported that they were still Facebook friends with the ex-partner; of these participants, over 90 percent indicated that the ex-partner's Facebook wall, photo albums, profile photo, status updates, and list of friends were visible to them.

The study supports previous research that suggests Facebook may facilitate behaviors associated with obsessive relational intrusion-the unwanted pursuit of an intimate relationship, particularly with an ex-romantic partner.

The authors insist "keeping tabs on an ex-partner through Facebook is associated with poorer emotional recovery and personal growth following a breakup. Therefore, avoiding exposure to an ex-partner, both offline and online, may be the best remedy for healing a broken heart."