I'd start by reading DB/DR or reading up on everything relevant you can find here about detachment, 180s, getting a life, that sort of thing.
Bottom line is, if you're both truly committed to making it work, regardless of your past, being different, whatever, then you will make it work. That's it, no magic, whether someone is just starting out or they're starting over in the midst of all this crap.
Good luck and posting specific questions or seeking opinions on specific problems/circumstances will get you the most responses.
You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means. -- Inigo Montoya, 'The Princess Bride'