Breakdown of Tienes que acostumbrarte a que la aceptación ayuda a sanar.
tener
to have
a
to
ayudar
to help
que
that / than
acostumbrarse a
to get used to
la aceptación
acceptance
sanar
to heal
Questions & Answers about Tienes que acostumbrarte a que la aceptación ayuda a sanar.
Why do we say acostumbrarte a que instead of just acostumbrarte que?
The verb acostumbrarse (to get used to) always requires the preposition a before its object, even when that object is a whole clause starting with que (that). In Spanish, you cannot drop the preposition just because a que clause follows it. It is a common mistake for English speakers to drop the preposition, but you must keep the a to maintain the correct prepositional regime.
The English translation says "the fact that". Could I say acostumbrarte al hecho de que here?
Yes, you could say acostumbrarte al hecho de que, but it sounds a bit wordy and formal. In Spanish, simply using a preposition + que (like a que in this sentence) naturally translates to "to the fact that" or "to [verb]-ing" in English. It is much more natural and concise to just say acostumbrarte a que.
Why is there an a between ayuda and sanar?
The verb ayudar (to help) is another verb that requires a specific preposition when it is followed by an infinitive verb. The formula is always ayudar a + [infinitive]. So, "helps to heal" translates directly to ayuda a sanar.
Why does aceptación have the definite article la in front of it when we don't say "the acceptance" in English?
In Spanish, when you talk about an abstract concept or a noun in a broad, general sense, you almost always need the definite article (el, la, los, las). Since aceptación is an abstract concept acting as the subject of the second part of the sentence (la aceptación ayuda), it requires the la.
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