My boyfriend (28M) says he wants to experience life before moving to the next stage of our relationship to ensure that he doesn't regret anything.

My Boyfriend (28M) and I (27F) have been together for 7 years. We met in college and were friends before we got together. Before he met me, he was very into clubbing, drinking and meeting new people. I have always been a homebody and simpleton. I enjoyed spending time with my family and having a close network of friends along with spending time in nature. I have always lived in Big cities while he only moved there due to College and was from a smaller town.

When we got together, he somewhat adopted my lifestyle, going on hikes, seeing and enjoying nature, but not once and I made it very clear to him did he have to give up going on night outs and clubbing.

We’ve experienced everything. I am his first relationship and he is my first adult relationship. We lost our virginities to each other, I taught him how to drive, we lived all our 20’s together.

During the pandemic in 2020, we were long distance as financially it was better for him to move back to his hometown as he could work from home. He was renting an apartment with his brother in the city at the time and I was still living with my parents. I had advised him and his brother to move back. During that time one of my grandparents who I am super close with passed away and I became very depressed. I made some bad decisions and ended up losing a lot of money putting me in debt.

End of 2021, Boyfriend (28M) got an offer for a new job in a new city. I (27F) was also having issues with my employer and decided that this was the world giving me a sign to get a new job and move with my boyfriend to the new city. For the first time in my life I moved out of my parents house and moved in with my boyfriend to a brand new city. The accommodation we got was a bit out in the countryside that there was no pedestrian path outside our door or public transport closeby and to do or go anywhere we first had to drive.

A few months into living together, my boyfriend ended up not enjoying his new job and I ended up getting diagnosed with PolyCystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) so we were both experiencing our own struggles. At that same time, I had also decided to further my studies and pursue a Masters Degree.

We both work as Engineers so we are working long hours too and both come home very tired. I tend to do most of the cooking and food preparation part though he is capable and sometimes do it on the weekends. The Laundry and Cleaning is split between us while the Dishes is his task. We got a dishwasher to make it more convenient for us too.

After 6-8 months of living in our new home and visiting my parents back in the city every few months, I had realised that I hated our new home. I felt imprisoned as I couldn’t just get up and leave without having to get into the car. Our landlord does have dogs so that has helped with my mental health. I have suffered with anxiety all my life and get severe seasonal depression in the winter as all of my deceased grandparents' death anniversaries fall in the winter and so do 2 of their birthdays too. My depression got so bad that i wouldn’t shower for weeks or brush my teeth for days too. Unfortunately I am high functioning, so I would still get up everyday against my will to go to work and do my chores. The house was becoming a mess as I would get home and not do any laundry or cleaning as I would be so tired so all I did was cook and then work on my college work. At the start of this year, my sister and her longtime partner got married and so everyone was looking at us next. One week ago, our close college friends who were a couple got married too. Exactly one week from the wedding while my Boyfriend (28M) was on Tiktok, he casually mentioned single life and so I said do you want to be single and he went silent. The conversation all just came down on that day. I asked him what he wanted and he said that for him to be ready to move onto the next stage in life, he felt like he wanted to explore life. I asked him if he wanted to separate then and he said no he wanted to be with me. I said the only solution here for least resentment towards each other is for us to separate. He then asked if I was willing to open the relationship and I immediately said no. It’s monogamy for me or nothing else. So we have decided to separate. I will be moving back to my hometown while he continues to live in our current accommodation. Unfortunately, due to my finances, I am still living with him. I am in the process of finding a new job in my hometown so that I can move back in with my parents.

I just want to add that my boyfriend (28M) enjoys porn on a daily basis which was no problem to me until he told me at the start of this year that it is fantasy for us to be in a threesome with another girl. I started to get self conscious too at the start of this year as he also likes to look at blonde thicc young women on Tiktok and that is not me. I am busty but my weight has exploded recently due to my PCOS and insulin resistance from my PCOS.

I just want to know that I made the right decision. I really do love him and he is my best friend so it hurts to know that this is all ending. I dunno if there is another solution so if you think there is, please do help.

TLDR: Boyfriend (28M) of 7 years wants to experience being single before moving on to the next stage after moving in together. Boyfriend enjoys watching porn daily and has asked if I was willing to open a relationship and I said no. We have decided to separate but I just want to make sure it’s the right choice.

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I (m26) asked my girlfriend’s (f27) best friend (f26) for a threesome and I’m struggling with an ultimatum

As the above text states. Some context for this story, said friend has taken me on friend dates before and expressed interest in me privately and specifically stated that she would be interested in being a third for a couple sometime. I took this as her asking permission to try it out sometime.

Yesterday, a group of us were day drinking at the lake. When the two of us were alone, girlfriends friend and I took a couple of pictures together and she started telling us about the date she went on the night before (which was with a poly man) and I took that as her wanting to have a threesome with my girlfriend and myself and offered it to her.

The thing is I genuinely don’t remember doing it. I don’t casually drink anymore so when I get drink, it hits extra hard. My first step to fixing this whole problem is to cold turkey drinking. Secondly, I need to explain everything that happened to my girlfriend, but idk how to. Any advice?

tl;dr I asked my girlfriend’s best friend for a threesome. Help.

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I(20F) am having the worst intrusive thoughts about my relationship with my bf (21M)

I plan on breaking up with my boyfriend soon, we haven't been the same in a while. And we have tried too many times to fix things. Recently my anxiety became horrible, to the point that i am throwing up and physically feeling pain. I've been thinking a lot about the things i did in the past during our relationship. He's my first boyfriend and we go to seperate colleges in seperate cities. We have been in a LDR for 1.5yrs now. We had just started dating when we moved away to go to our colleges. At that time I found a guy in my class kinda attractive and fun to talk to. However, i never wanted to get with him, and my boyfriend was my first and only choice. I can never imagine cheating on him, i love him dearly. The guy crossed my mind a few times but i tried to shut it off. And eventually i could, i forgot about his existence. I had also indirectly told him i have a bf, so that things wouldn't escalate. I also thought another guy in my friend group was attractive and i enjoyed talking to him. But I've never thought of cheating on my boyfriend or choosing someone else above him. I have a lot of love and respect for him.

I told him about this a week back, and apologized a lot, he forgave me pretty quickly, but I'm not able to forgive myself.

I don't know why now, after an year, I'm thinking about all this all of a sudden, and I'm feeling insanely guilty and disgusted with myself. I feel like i wronged my boyfriend. Not just this, my intrusive thoughts have gotten to the point that, I'm imagining things with his friends, i never ever thought this way before, and now in my head I'm like, oh u would make out with any of his friends, u r capable of this, if u think anyone looks good, ull do it. And then I'm imagining it and crying, and being disgusted by myself. I would never do something like this in a million years. But I'm just thinking of every other guy i know and imagining it and then blaming myself for imaging it. It's like telling urself don't imagine an orange. Uve already imagined the orange while telling urself not to. It's getting really out of control. I've never felt this way before or thought this way before. I feel disgusted with myself for imagining it but as i tell myself to not think of it, i keep thinking more. And trust me ive only seen these people in pictures, never met them, never thought about them. All of this is giving me a lot of anxiety, making me feel like I'm an out of control freak. Ive never felt this way before or thought something to this extent. I just think the worst possible thing and apologize to him in my head, and to god. And just think that it's fine, we r gonna end anyway, he will be better off without me coz i have such a sick mind.

I would really appreciate if someone would talk to me about this. As i basically have no one to talk about this, openly. Normally I would've gone to my bf for help, but this is too sick.

TLDR: I'm having intrusive thoughts, that i would never do.

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lot’s of built up anger towards bf (m18)

i (f18) have been so mad at my boyfriend (m18) recently. I love him. We’ve been dating for two years and we’re best friends. i’m just getting tired of him doing the same things over and over again, it’s making me start to blow up on him.

there’s always something with his friends. he doesn’t understand why i don’t want him taking 14 yr olds to get nicotine/weed or why it offends me his friends disrespected me. he’ll make jokes i’m not okay with around me, long as his friends are around. he’ll be rude to me just cause my brother is in the room.

he insists on being brutally honest and i don’t wanna hear that i’ve gained weight or that i embarrassed him. or that my outfit sucks

and then i get the sweetest apology known to man with no change because “this is just how i am”

tdlr: getting constantly mad at boyfriend over little things, what do i do?

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Interfaith Voices: The lasting value of relationships - Corvallis Gazette-Times

Interfaith Voices: The lasting value of relationships  Corvallis Gazette-Times

* This article was originally published here

I (20M) need to wait a month or two to date the girl I like (19F)

So, I had a fwb situation with someone (19F) who now ended up being in my friend group. It was fine at first but she tended to pressure me into things and make moves when I was drunk or just out of a relationship, and it felt a little off. I didn’t really want to do it a lot of the time. And I realised this and cut things off about 6 months ago. She however still likes me.

The girl I like currently is best friends with this girl I used to have a fwb situation with. The ex-fwb girl is currently changing her depression medication so is having really bad mood swings, and this will probably continue for about the next 6 weeks or so.

I’ve kissed the girl I like a few times and we have really strong feelings for one another, but agreed last night that we can’t sneak around behind my ex-fwb’s back as we are both mates with her (shes part of my friend group and best mates with the new girl). We decided that we would see other people for a while until her medication stuff was sorted, and then we’d speak to her about it and tell her we were going to date. We can’t do it right now because it would be way too much with how the medication is messing with her head.

I’m just not sure whether it’s worth waiting though. I really like this girl, and I don’t really want to see anyone else. I’m just not really sure how to go about this. Any advice is much appreciated, thanks.

TL:DR; the girl I like is best friends with my ex-fwb, who still likes me. She’s changing medication for depression right now and it’s hard for her so we’re waiting before doing anything more serious.

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I (23m) going through break up with (22f) and i need to know if I'm gonna go through the same pain again even though it's been three months

I (23m) was in a one year relationship with (22f) , I was fully attached to her and I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her, three months ago and after a year of dating she told me she have feelings for someone else and she can't understand herself and why she feels so, so she told me we can't stay together as long as she have these mixed feelings, and we stopped talking but we were still following each other on social media. I was really hurt that she let these feelings stand between us and I decided to move on. For three months I went through tough time trying to heal , i goind the gym and i started working on myself but deep inside i wasn't ready to let go Three months passed but i still miss her everyday and i frequently dream about her, two days ago I saw her story where she put a song that she misses someone really bad and part of me thought it could be me, so i sent her a romantic poem that I missed her too and i want her in my life. She replied that she is in a relationship with the other guy she had feelings for him and she can no longer be in my life by any form and then she asked me to delete all of our pictures together and she deleted my number and removed me from her social media. Now I'm heartbroken again and i need to know if I'm going to go through the same pain again that i had for the last three months or is it going to be easier this time? Do i need three months more to feel okay again ?

Tl;Dr. I went through heartbreak for three months and now i feel I'm back to the same point where my heart got first broken.

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My [28M] girlfriends [23F] bad moods are causing tension in our home

Myself and my girlfriend recently moved to a new city and are living together in a small apartment. It’s been nice for the most part, but there’s a problem that’s building. My girlfriend can be incredibly moody and hot headed. The thing is that it’s never anything malicious, she’s just easily annoyed over small things.

I understand that she can’t be happy all the time, but It’s the frequency of her moods that’s bothering me. I feel like I can’t go a day without her getting upset about something.

She is moody at some point every day. Sometimes she’s mad at me, more often it’s a general bad mood. On occasion she (and she says this herself) “ wakes up on the wrong side of the bed” and has an entire day where shes fuming. These days ruin my entire day.

I’ve tried to help her get out of the mood, from talking to her, but she doesn’t want to talk about it and get’s upset. I’ve tried cooking healthy and exercising too, which works a little, but she’s still a hot head by nature.

Because we are living in a small space, in a new city and don’t have many friends yet, I feel like I don’t have an escape.. If she’s moody the best thing to do is leave, but that leaves me just wandering around the city alone and killing time in the movies/ at bars until she calms down. It’s not fair.

Lately, it’s been getting to me more and I’ve been having angry outbursts that I’m ashamed of. I can handle her moods, but I need a few days in between. I’m really being pushed and I don’t like how I’m reacting to the pressure. I told her that the main source is coming from her and told her she needs to talk to someone like a counsellor, because I’m not a professional and can’t handle the frequency of the fights. She said that she’s not ready for that and doesn’t want to be forced.

I honestly don’t know where else to go from this. When I actually think about what she’s annoyed about or what instigates the fights are, it feels ridiculous because they are over such small things, but accumulated, they are really bothering me

TLDR; My girlfriend is hot headed and easily annoyed. She gets annoyed over small things every single day and over time this is starting to frustrate me cause me to have outbursts. The source of the arguments is coming from her mood. I’ve tried to get her to exercise, eat healthy and I’ve talked to her, but it’s draining me. I suggested therapy, but she’s not ready. What can I do if the source of our fights is coming from her mood that she’s not resolving herself?

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Me (26 f) and my husband (27m) have very different ideas of what intimacy means, and how often it's needed.

Hi me (26f) and my husband (27m) have very different ideas of intimacy. For me it hold my hand, playing with my hair, a back rub, a kiss on the head. To my husband he doesn't quite understand it. He says he doesn't need it and he's perfectly fine without touching unless it's sex. Now here's something to note he has some truma from when he was a kid. He went to therapy and basically everything is sexual even a kiss. He was telling me that when he sees his mom and dad dancing in the kitchen, or his dad kiss his mom he assumes they are having sex that night. I'm dying for any attention and he says, "I touch you all the time." He means he puts his hand on me ther is no cuddling. There are no kisses or back rubs, he holds my hand but that's it. I no longer want sex at all, but there's some truma with that for me. I'm not sure what to do I explain it to him he doesn't understand. I don't find any of the things he says about his parents to be sexual they just love eachother. I just feel like he doesn't like me. And I know there is stress but this was going on before. I'll tell him he tries forna week and it stops after. I don't know what to do, I just want affection. I'm so lost right now and it doesn't help that he feels nothing. He has basically no emotion. We can't afford therapy for him or me or even both of us. At this point it feels like I have to suck it up, and I'm trying so hard to but I just feel lonely. I can't talk to anyone I have no friends and can't talk to my parents or my sister. None of them have hathy relationships, and I don't want them to view him differently. Am I wrong for wanting this or is his view normal? I think I just need advice.

TD;LR: me (26f) and my husband (27m) have very different ideas on what intimacy means.

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My GF (21F) of 5 years had a mental episode or something screaming and biting me (M23) I just need some help on if I should stay and help her thru it or call it

So to start my gf has done this before frankly she can be INSANE sometimes. And let me tell you guys right now yes I admit sometimes I can push her to it but I’m only one human being I can’t just shut up and bite my tongue with how she acts sometimes.

So anyways we went on vacation last week and I have been trying my HARDEST to be a good boyfriend and not argue, apologize for things and help her. And she kind of tried until yesterday we went to some flower shop to get flowers and I guess I wasn’t letting her pick what she wanted and we got in a big fight and kept arguing (idk if this matters she was on her period and birth control). But anyways I went to the car becuase she just wouldn’t stop and she gets embarrassing in public.

When she finally gets to the car a hour later I leave cuz she still was blaming me and having attitude and not taking ANY blame. So I guess leaving set her off uncontrollably… she started screaming, biting, kicking around throwing a literal temper tantrum like a toddler. This went on for like 20 mins until she started saying things like fuck you , I hate you , almost spit in my face all types of shit. Then switched to no one cares about me I’m all alone blah blah and then she started BEGGING to go to the mental hospital. So you know what I brought her and was hoping she’d get help for a few days and relazie how she treated me 😂😂😂. nope withen 5 hours I’m backing picking her up and the funny thing is all she does is cry about how bad it was there and doesn’t talk in the car ride home. So eventually I say I’m sorry for the flower thing expecting a apology for how she acted.

And THIS IS WHERE IT REALLY GOT ME. After all that she litterly started FREAKING out again screaming at me how it was still my fault all this and how she went thru so much today.

And then lastly we get home and she starts screaming SO LOUD that a new neighbor from across the apartment complex came knocking on our door asking us to w quiet and then talked to me for like 30 mins and my girlfriend downstairs for a while idk what he was talking to her about. But eventually when me and him were talking she came back and went to sleep.

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My [25f] boyfriend [29m] wont come to my family bbq today

Hi everyone,

I am beyond depressed right now. My cat died last month and my grandmother has days to live so this situation going on right now with my bf is not helping.

So yesterday my family told me to ask him if he was free for today to come by for a family bbq, my sister will be there with her bf as well. I found out in the morning and wanted to tell him immediately to give him the invite but lo and behold he is sleeping.

He wakes up around 9:30pm and calls me and I let him know the bbq is at 1pm the next day and my sis is bringing her bf. He says its too short notice and I get pissed because he was sleeping so I couldnt tell him earlier. I am hurt because I am going through a lot and want him to be at the bbq with me. He says he needs to sleep at 1pm so it wont work for him.

He stays up all night playing league of legends and apparently “working” at his freelance job. I told him to see a doctor about this sleep schedule for over a year and he refuses.

What should I do? Am I in the wrong?

TLDR - Boyfriend won’t come to family bbq because of his strange sleep schedule.

(Edited for clarity)

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Why would he now only be looking for casual 26 f 30 m?

I dated this guy for 6 months and in the beginning he was telling me how nice he is and that he cares so much about being a good boyfriend. He had always had a girlfriend from the age of 17, had he had 5 serious relationships before we dated when he was 28, of of which he had been with a woman for 6 years from the age of 17 to 23. He said all his mates try and set him up with their sisters as they know he’d be a good supportive partner

But he never planned or took me on a date, became critical and made me feel unappreciated . His evil dirty looks he gave and how he got annoyed with little things I did with no intention made me feel sad

He dumped me and now he’s on tinder looking for ‘a casual relationship’

Honestly don’t know what I did to this man to think he no longer wants a relationship, but I treated him with care and respect and I was kind and supportive and planned fun things.

tldr embarrassed as even he has had long term relationships and I never have done. It makes me feel like something is wrong with me

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Boyfriend won’t have sex with me

For around a year now my partner has not wanted to have sex with me. We were fine for around a year prior casually seeing each other then fine at the start of our relationship but something changed for him and now he just never wants me. I’ve tried to ask what’s wrong and he tells me different things all the time, every reason possible so I don’t know which one it actually is and what I can even help him with. I’ve tried my best for everything I’ve tried to look different wear something nice, do my makeup, not to my makeup, I’ve tried texting him I’ve tried being forward about it or just waiting for him to initiate but nothing happens. We were having sex like once every 6 weeks, I’m 21 I don’t feel like I should be at this stage in my life right now, before I was with him I was seeing lots of people and having regular sex and felt sexually wanted but now I feel so ugly and disgusting because he just doesn’t want me. I’ve been asking for months for things to get better and he thinks they are because we have sex once or twice a month now n yeah it’s an improvement but it’s not what I need. It annoys be because when I’m not in the mood I just let him because I feel happy that he even wants me. It’s so pathetic and I feel so humiliated. It’s not even about the sex anymore it’s just about feeling wanted or pretty. I have no idea what to do I feel like I just say the same points over and over and ask for the same things nothing happens. I don’t want to leave him because outside of sex everything is perfect he’s s perfect boyfriend but this bleeds into everything else and makes me so miserable and insecure all of the time.

TLDR: my boyfriend isn’t interested in me

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doing long distance with my bf

me (f18) and my bf (m19) have been together for almost two years. we’re doing long distance starting tomorrow for two months. i feel a fucking put in my stomach. i didn’t think it would be so hard. i’m going to india for a month, then he’s going to bangladesh for a month. and i know how much that sucks. we have a happy, loving relationship. we never mistreat each other, we communicate, we do everything in our power to keep our relationship sustainable and healthy. regardless of all of this why is it so goddamn hard??
we see each other everyday, by our own accord. if we don’t have plans that day, he’ll ask to take me on a drive, or i’ll ask to get food with him. suddenly not seeing each other for two months feels so wrong. it feels like next week we’re supposed to go out like normal, but instead i’ll be 9.5 hours ahead. we’ve tried to find ways to cope. we’ve decided on a schedule and when we can talk to each other. yesterday, he surprised me with little moleskin notebooks we can journal in for the duration of the two months, so after we return we can read each other’s thoughts and potentially feel so much closer. :-( i don’t know why this is so hard. am i just being an angsty teen ? we’re trying so hard to make the time fly by but i’m on the verge of sobbing at any given moment. i just wanna be able to hug him whenever i want. today is the day before i fly and everything feels so fucking hopeless. i feel a pit in my stomach. please help me with some advice. how long did you do long distance for? what was the time difference? how was it? also, am i being completely overdramatic? no matter how much him and i rationalize it, i just miss him :/

TLDR- need advice on doing long distance with my bf for two months

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How do people, relationships, experiences, and movements shape ... - Resilience

How do people, relationships, experiences, and movements shape ...  Resilience

* This article was originally published here

I (27f) am thinking about messaging an ex-best friend (26f) who I haven't spoken to in years and would like some advice

Let me preface this with a bit of background info: this is about my ex-best friend (let's refer to them as EBF going forward) who I've known since middle school and who I ended up living with all 4 years during college. EBF and I were great friends all throughout middle and high school, but once we started living together, our friendship started becoming a bit toxic. I started feeling like I was constantly walking on eggshells around her and like I couldn't ever express my true self, and I began to notice that being around her more often than not left me feeling confused, down on myself, lesser than, like I was an inconvenience, etc. Eventually it got to the point where being around her started to become extremely uncomfortable and was impacting my self esteem and overall mental health, and as a result I started actively avoiding her as much as possible.

I'm not sure if living with her and dealing with all this toxicity perhaps left me with some sort of trauma/ptsd, because even in the years after we stopped living together, I'd still get uneasy and have this sort of negative gut reaction whenever we'd hang out. Even just seeing her posts pop up on my social media feed would make me feel really uncomfortable and sometimes give me flashbacks of that time. Over time, I sort of started distancing myself from her, and then eventually once covid happened I took advantage of the situation and finally cut her off for good.

It's been probably 3 years since we last talked, and I was fully convinced I'd never speak to her again. However, today I was listening to an old band we both used to like, and in doing so it brought back a lot of the good memories I have with her. For the first time in a while I found myself smiling while thinking back on our friendship, and for some reason this thought popped into my mind that I should reach out to her to see how she's doing. It was actually kind of surprising because I realized I no longer seem to have that same uneasy feeling when I think about her, like I have somehow healed over these past few years and no longer hold the same resentment towards her about what happened. At first I thought maybe it was just the nostalgia getting to me, but idk for some reason I really do think that my feelings and perspective on this situation has shifted, if that's even possible?

One thing I also want to mention is that another one of our mutual best friends who I am still in frequent contact with has told me before how she also feels that EBF can be kinda condescending to her too sometimes, and how she's considered living with her before but doesn't think she'd ever be able to actually do it because of how draining EBF is to be around. My brain is telling me this is a red flag and that I would be better off not re-opening that line of contact with EBF, but the forgiving/optimistic part of me wants to believe we could be friends again, even if we only talk occasionally.

I guess the reason I made this post is because I'm not quite sure what this means or what I should do moving forward. I do still have love for EBF and care about her and hope that she's happy and doing well. I do want to text her, but I'm just not sure if it's the best/smartest idea because I think I've finally healed and I don't want to potentially re-ignite those bad feelings and/or subject myself to any further trauma. It's like on the one hand I'm open to giving our friendship another chance, but at the same time I don't want to unnecessarily bring someone back into my life who might potentially do the same hurtful things as before. So I don't really know what to do.

What do y'all think I should do? Has anyone here been in a similar situation before? Any tips/advice would be very much appreciated.

Tldr; I've been thinking about getting back in touch with my ex-best friend who I was in a toxic friendship with (which ended up significantly impacting my self-esteem and mental health for many years). Reason being is that today I happened to listen to an old band we both used to enjoy and it brought back a lot of my good memories of us together and made me realize I no longer hold resentment or any negative feelings towards her or the situation anymore. I do still love and care about her despite everything and would like to get back in touch with her, but I also don't want to potentially re-ignite the issue or cause any further trauma. What should I do?

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My bf (25M) hurt my feelings and he apologized but I (24F) still feel hurt

For context we have been dating for about 6 months and have been serious for 3 and haven’t had any spats until now.

I recently got my wisdom teeth out so I can hardly open my jaw. My boyfriend looks at me and goes “I need you to recover”. I said “It’s because I look like a chipmunk, huh?” he replied with “No, so you can brush your teeth better”…. I instantly had tears in my eyes and brushed my teeth a second time in a row.

He kept saying sorry and hugging me and eventually I told him to just think before he speaks next time and that it’s fine but honestly? That messed me up. I am in so much pain and I have my boyfriend basically telling me my breath stinks.

I’ve already told him how that made me feel, etc but I am still so bothered by it. I hate to rehash things after I said it was fine but I feel so embarrassed and gross now.

TL;DR - I got my wisdom teeth out and my boyfriend told me he wants me to recover soon so I can “brush my teeth better”.

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* This article was originally published here

Am I (F26) wrong for wanting my bf (M26) to text me.

Story here is really simple. My boyfriend has never been a guy who's been good at texting me . That hasn't been a problem for me until recently, because he moved country. He calls me maybe once a week, and will give an occasional text, if I text him first, that said not always that he even answers, and sometimes he can spend 1-2 days to answer. Our plan is that I will move with him, but I'm feel a bit left in the dark. I tried to tell him last time we spoke that he's a dry texter, but he just said that that's just who he is. I'm I wrong for wanting him to communicate more? I'd just like a text a day asking how I am or a good night text.

TL;DR long distant boyfriend is horrible at texting or communicating with me. Am I wrong for being upset by this?

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* This article was originally published here

My (34m) boyfriend has a low libido, and I (28f) am sexually frustrated.

As the title says, it's becoming an issue and I feel horrible about it. We've been dating for about a year. He's wonderful in literally every other aspect, the perfect boyfriend, but he's got an extremely low libido. We have sex maybe once every month, if I'm lucky, and when it does happen it's usually initiated by me, which makes me a little bit frustrated because I really want him to initiate.

I know this isn't fair to him. I live in Japan, work at an American company, but he's Japanese. His work environment is more strenuous. He works a tough job, with extremely long hours, and it's harder for him. If he can't get it up he can't get it up. I never want to force him into sex, because that's not pleasurable for me or him. I'd never want to pressure him. I've conveyed that to him and told him that I understand, and that I don't love him any less. I've Googled solutions. I've tried buying sex toys, masturbating on my own to help with my sexual urges, and hoping he'll get involved. However, last night, something happened that really hurt me.

I was in bed, touching myself, and he didn't offer to help or didn't seem interested at all. That's fine, I'm not expecting him to. But when I glance over, he's looking at a pornographic web comic instead. That really hurt me. I thought, "I'm over here touching myself, but that's more interesting?"

We got in an argument and he apologized profusely, saying he thought I wanted to be left alone, that he thinks I'm sexy and its his problem, but it's still bothering me. I don't know what to do. I know he's being completely sincere. He loves me, and I love him, but my needs aren't being met in this aspect.

If I'm being honest, I'm fairly attractive. I'm not worried about how I look being a factor in this, but this situation is making me doubt myself. I really don't want to break up with him. That's not even on my mind. No one has understood me as well as he has, but this is making me frustrated... I feel horrible. I just want to see if anyone else has experienced this and has any insight.

Tl;dr: my boyfriend has a low libido and it's driving me crazy.

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* This article was originally published here

I’m (28) confused by this gamer girl (24)

I’m not really much of a gamer. Recently I played an online game just for a few months and met a girl on the game who has a personality just like mine and is from the same area as me.

As we played together she would make flirty jokes. I didn’t really think much of it. Then, unfortunately, her friend in real life died. I spent a lot of quality time with her that night after that to make her feel better.

Over the next few weeks, she started telling me about how lonely she is, how she’s not happy anywhere. She would also complain about the boyfriend on occasion. I didn’t cross any lines and only offered encouraging words as a friend (didn’t respond to comments about the boyfriend). Then she started saying things that confused me — for example, how she sometimes thinks about her brother and I being good friends.

From what she told me about the boyfriend, it sounded like a toxic relationship with an unhealthy power-dynamic. She also told me she might break up with the boyfriend and move back to my area.

I quit the game and didn’t think we’d talk much after. I figured if she became single and lived in my area, I’d ask her out. She started to hit me up for small talk — how I’m doing, how my day went, etc. When girls do this to me on a regular basis, it’s always been because they have a thing for me.

She told me she’ll be back in my area soon to take care of her family, and that she might not be going back — I took that to mean the breakup was coming.

We kept talking on the regular, but now without me playing the game at all. I don’t really keep up with gamer friends outside of games, so this was new to me.

Then in one of our conversations she tells me she’s living her dream (playing video games while the boyfriend works). Then she posts in a massive server about how her boyfriend keeps the relationship interesting and how she’s going to marry him. She also told me she “visits” my area often — so it doesn’t seem like she’ll be “permanently” back anymore.

I got her a nice birthday gift and after that, I essentially told her we can’t talk much anymore. I’m trying to start my own business and need to focus, and the connections I make with people I want to be IRL.

This seems to have upset her, she totally shunned me when I tried explaining things further. I also got kicked from a small server she maintains, so seems like there’s some bad blood here. In my experience, if a girl is shunning you — she thinks you’re a creep or she’s gossiping about you to others.

We haven’t had a conversation in weeks now, so it seems like maybe the friendship is over?

I’ve never been into a girl online, ever. I even tried multiple times during the friendship to push this girl away but she kept wanting to hang alone with just me on the game (she would ditch her friends for me and I never asked her to).

My therapist and IRL friends have told me I made the right decision to distance myself, but why do I feel so guilty then?

I’m pretty sure I did the right thing — I didn’t try to ruin my friend’s relationship, I didn’t try to end the friendship I was just trying to say I need space to focus on my business and IRL friends, and I even got a nice birthday gift to make sure it was clear that we are indeed still friends.

tl;dr: I felt uncomfortable doing small talk with a girl in a relationship who seemed interested in me, and that upsets her.

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* This article was originally published here

Struggling with the intentions of my BF's (27M) female co-worker (30F)

Hey guys!
Two questions for you as I’d love to get opinions from other people on this. It’s not really a problem in our relationship as we talk about all this openly and reassure each other a lot. But I’d love some opinions as I personally am struggling (silently) a bit with her actions/her (unclear) intentions. Something is bugging me a bit.

1) What do you think about one-on-ones between a female co-worker (not single but unstable relationship) and a male co-worker (been in a relationship for over 10 years) after work, meaning going for drinks, for example? My BF's colleague asked him to go for a coffee or drink after work sometime. I know from my BF for him it would only be to keep up friendships at the office as he didn't have that in his previous job and I love that he gets on with people there. But who knows if it's platonic for her?

2) If the female co-worker really enjoys my bf’s company at work, likes chatting to him, is open when it comes to talking about sex, asks what he likes in a woman, invites him to her parties (with other work colleagues though) and texts him every now and then outside of work (most recent being a text in the morning about her looking forward to seeing him after she’s been off for a few days or also asking for advice about her relationship), do you think that this alone could mean she’s interested in him?

She's Spanish and did also apparently mention to my BF in a conversation that Spanish people tend to be a lot more open to stuff and also having close friends of the same sex is less of a problem for them. So maybe she does just see him as a friend?

TL;DR: I'm not sure what my BF's female co-worker's intentions are.

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* This article was originally published here

Emotionally unavailable men, women and why you're attracted to them - USA TODAY

Emotionally unavailable men, women and why you're attracted to them  USA TODAY

* This article was originally published here

Am I (24m) overreacting to my girlfriend (24f) not showing interest in my passionate side

Hey everyone

Me and my girlfriend have been together for almost three years and it's not been easy. The first 6 months were great, but after that life got pretty shitty for the both of us. My girlfriend definitely had quite some anger issues which she had never faced. She definitely was a very dominant person. She wouldn't be physically aggressive, but was verbally very much so. I talked about this a lot with her and after some (way too long, almost a year) time, well actually when I was about to break up with her, she said that she understands me and agreed to go to therapy. this was around the 1.5 year mark.

Going to therapy was a slow process, but she started to heal. She is able to communicate her feelings calmly now, it is definitely a huge difference compared to how she used to be.

That doesn't mean that it still isn't hard sometimes. I definitely hold some scars from our past and am very sensitive if some of her dominant behaviour comes up.

Actually I almost broke up with her again a few weeks ago. We were fighting almost weekly having stupid fights again about really silly stuff. she would always defend her own viewpoint and would not try to see my point of view. She would always defend why she reacted like she did, but wouldn't show compassion or understanding to why something felt bad for me. I've tried to explain that we need to be ok with each others feelings even if we don't agree, because we cannot change how things make us feel but we can be understanding and compassionate about it towards each other. After trying to explain this for months I got tired of it and asked for a break of our relationship. She got very sad and again begged me to stay, saying she will do everything she can to make us work. She asked me to write down specifically how I want us to communicate when we have a disagreement so I did. I basically wrote these two things:

1. Don't invalidate each others feelings e.g. don't say you shouldn't feel like this bc I didn't mean it like this, but see that the other person is hurt and be compassionate about it instead of defensive.
2. I also wrote down that I don't want her to point fingers like "you started with feeling x so ...". I don't want us to defend our own beliefs but see each others feelings, even when you don't entirely understand them or are entirely logical to you.

Please note I wrote these things in a kind and sweet way, the two points are a short version of what I wrote down.

The reason why I haven't broken up with her yet or why I always want to keep believing in us is because we are really nice together when things do work out. I love being with her and she is very sweet and loving. I know she cares about me a lot.

Now we are in week 2 after this incident, and we haven't fought anymore since. Now the following issue came up:

I've always been a very passionate person. I care very much about music, I honestly think it is one of the most important things in my life. I produce music myself, and dream about making it my job.

My girlfriend isn't like that. She doesn't have a passion in life, which is of course totally fine to me. I understand that not everyone has this burning passion for his hobby/job or whatever and don't expect my girlfriend to have that.

The thing that bothers me is that when I talk about it, I often get the feeling that she is not really interested in what I'm saying. We've talked about this before and it's gotten better. She definitely shows more interest in my music and is more open to it.

Yesterday I was talking about how Fred Again is very inspirational to me and that I almost feel jealous of his talent and personality. I really look up to him and his career. I talk about this very passionately (only a few minutes), but I notice my girlfriend just doesn't really care about what I'm saying. She seems uninterested. I told her calmly that when she seems so uninterested when I talk about something that is very important to me, it hurts because I feel she doesn't care about something that is clearly important to me.

She said that I was right about what I felt, because she isn't interested in this Fred Again and doesn't care about him.

I told her that to me it is important that she cares about something I'm passionate about, and could at least show some interest. She responded by saying that I cannot expect us to have the same interests always, and that she does care about most of my music stuff. Just not about this topic.

I feel weird about this, because I feel like I would always be interested in something that my significant other is very passionate about or cares a lot about. Just because I care so much about this person, of course I care about what is most important to them in their lives. It is evident to me, but to her this obviously isn't.

She says that she already focusses on a lot of things, and really still has to put a lot of effort in communicating calmly and clearly. She doesn't want to live by a set of rules given by me and she doesn't want to feel like she has to think about every word she has to say to me, because she claims that she already has to think a lot already about the way that she communicates, which i do understand and see.

It has always been hard for me when she doesn't show interest when I'm very passionate about something. I guess I want to feel supported in what I'm passionate about. I would say that it even makes me doubt my relationship, especially with all the other things we've been through/going through. Am I overreacting? Or is this an expectation that is valid to have from my girlfriend? Or do I expect too much from her... Idk anymore.

TLDR; we've been through a hard and emotionally draining time due to my girlfriends mental issues. Now I don't feel like she's always interested about what I'm passionate about, and have a hard time accepting this.

It still hurts a lot to think about breaking up. I just never seem to really want to. It hurts to think about us both going our own way and meeting new people. I just wish we could work things out... It does sometimes feel like we aren't compatible but I just don't want to face it :( I just always want to believe that there's a future for us where we worked all this stuff out and that our good times will flourish and our bad times will fade and scars will heal...

Thanks for reading through all this. Any advice is welcome :)

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* This article was originally published here

Was I wrong to tell my ex to f off?

My (28F) ex (30M) reached out to try and have a conversation but I eventually told him to leave me alone. Now for some context, we had a huge fight before we broke up 3 months ago. One of the reasons we broke up was because he was constantly mean, and would always insult me for no good reason. If I did anything wrong like forget to do something or some silly human mistake he would go off and attack me, calling me names and such. Whenever I pointed it out he blamed me for his behavior. It reached a point I feared talking to him about something vulnerable as he would probably use it against me in one way or another. Eventually we broke up, but in the end had a conversation and agreed we can be friends. Now a month later he reached out and sounded genuine telling me I could talk to him in case I had a problem or needed to talk. I took him up on his offer and told him I needed help with something that just needed him to send me a word document he had. He immediately changed and started calling me a pretender saying he can’t help because it will benefit me and my new boyfriend. I was surprised by this because I didn’t even have a new boyfriend and this request had nothing to do with anyone. It was purely for me and he knew that. I told him he was rude and he could have said no without the extra stuff. He said he just said it Incase I asked why I would already have the answer. I thought it was not okay but dropped the subject, didn’t respond and decided to move on with my life. A month later he reached out again, asking about my life and work. I asked him why he was interested and he said he was just asking. I didnt see an issue with that until he started asking if I am happy and i told him he cant come asking such questions after what he did last time and I didnt have to respond to anything now that we were broken up. He then said was the horrible person here and was being rude. was I wrong?

TLDR: my ex reached out after being rude to ask me about whats going on in my life but i told him I didnt have to answer. was I wrong?

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* This article was originally published here

I feel like my new partner keep all his problems inside

I (24M) and him (28M) have been dating for 4 months so it is recent, we don't live in the same city but manage to see each other every month.

He's a very loving and caring partner, he does a lot to satisfy me, as I do with him too. He always gets me flowers when we meet, invite me to diner and more, while I buy him gifts, diners and support him as much as I can.

However, I saw some problems already in the relationship. He's from Asia and they keep everything for themselves, he has a lot of stress because he pays for his studies by himself and work on the side, his grandpa passed away in his country 2 months ago and his uncle is at the hospital, he misses his family a lot but can't afford to travel there atm, he didn't see them for 3 years, his family struggle with money too because they had to pay for all the hospital bills for his grandpa and make around 500 euros per month, now less. He struggles a lot with money also in Europe despite his hard work, but won't accept my help (I'm not very rich, still a student but I can live in a comfortable way with my parents help). But the problem is that he mentions all those problems, I can see how much it impacts him, but he won't open himself to me. He told me he didn't cry since he was 10.

I can feel that he has a lot of insecurities, he told me that also. Sometimes, I'd make comments that I find normal. One day during a fight at the beginning before dating, I told him we might not be compatible, which to me is just a fact and not bad, but he said I "looked down" on him, and made him vulnerable. When I want to go to a nice bar, he doesn't want to because he feels like he doesn't "belong" there and people will judge him for his look (Tattoos and piercings). To me, as a gay man, I clearly don't give a f**** to what people might think of me or if I can/can't afford to be in a place.

Now here come the problem (to me): He feels empty, like he doesn't exist on his own, and he has to be part of a community. He joined the underground community and like activism which is nice, but actually never do anything. His only hobby is to go to illegal raves under bridges, in abandoned buildings with people and get drunk, dance to techno surrounded by people who does lot of drugs (he doesn't do drugs) with no one to look after them, since it's not a real club but illegal. He only feels like himself there he told me. I have nothing against clubs, if you like techno then go for it, but be reasonable, it causes me a lot of stress that he goes out that much and not just for fun, but just to be "free" to be him. I wish he could connect more to his emotions and be himself all the time. He saw that it caused me stress so he reduced his clubbing moments, but now he doesn't look happy, I don't know what to do. The world have so many amazing things to explore, why only just go to night clubs? When he visited me 2 weeks ago, I showed him Paris and we had so many great moments, he told me it was the best week end of his life and that he feels so peaceful with me. Also, his group of friends are the same, They are all struggling and go to raves all the time , so he joins them. He has FOMO when he misses one party and feels so bad and guilty. He follows like 150 raves on Instagram so it constantly there. The fact that ALL his friends are only partying and not doing anything else doesn't help I think, but I can't tell him to make new friends, I find it inappropriate.

I see a therapist and that helped me a lot, I wish he could see the extraordinary and hardworking person he is and feels good all the time. When I read his messages to my therapist, she told me it sounds like an identity crisis, but he's 28, I'm so anxious, she said it might pass but no one can be sure. When I ask myself what do I want, my reply is someone that matches my lifestyle, who can enjoy museums, concerts, walking in the park and nice diners. I don't like clubs but I don't mind it since we don't have to share all our interests, as long as it's reasonable. But at the same time, before meeting my therapist, I was that insecure person and my way to feel better was compulsive shopping, and him its the raves, so I understand him. I'm just so lost on what to do.

I love him, but this is too intense for me, I don't know what else I can do, I know I can't heal him but how could I open his eyes? What do you think on that situation or have you been in a similar one?

TL;DR! - my partner doesn't share his feelings and emotions with me, and always feel empty until he goes to underground illegal raves where he can feel free to be "him".

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* This article was originally published here

Ways by which narcissists punish you in relationship - Hindustan Times

Ways by which narcissists punish you in relationship  Hindustan Times

* This article was originally published here

boyfriend (19m) blocked me (18m) for bringing up his mom during an arguement

we've been together for 5 months

basically my bf made a comment which he apparently intended as a joke towards my cat, saying that all I care about is my cat and that I love it more than him, then proceeded to say he'd abuse and run over the cat with a truck.

after I called him out he apologized and said he was joking but it didn't seem genuine, I told him do you not realize how messed up it is to threaten to kill my cat that I care about.

I was mad at him obviously so I told him "what if I joked about f'ing your mom" (he's a HUGE mamas boy) to which he replied by telling me "don't ever bring my mom up again, I'm not letting this slide." and blocked me. I know it was a mistake to talk about his parents and I messed up but idk what to do now.

please cut me some slack as this is my first relationship and i am naïve, and its long distance as he lives 40 minutes away from me, any advice on what to do because I feel so lost right now, Ik we both messed up but I care about him so much and I want to fix this but i'm not sure if I should reach out.

TL;DR: bf blocked me bc I joked about f'ing his mom

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* This article was originally published here

Should I (28/f) cancel my first date with (27/m) after being ignored all of yesterday?

Tl;dr - we were both honest about wanting intimacy and not being able to find what we’re looking for in partners. He was really straightforward with me and I was with him. He’s called me almost every night since we met, we text first.

I called him too but it was mainly him, he felt comfortable calling me when he thought about me or wanted to know I was smiling or to hear my laugh. Admittedly, it’s only been a week but it’s been a great start. I’m not invested because things happen I guess, I’d be very disappointed and I think it’d take some time to get over this. Things are intense and I’m excited to see what will happen between us.

Things were going well until I said something about an insecurity with being intimate, I want to take things slow and get to know him in person. I don’t have a timeframe but I said I won’t rush into anting sexual. He was offended and said he doesn’t want me to hold back.

He wants passion and some sort of closeness while getting to know me. It’s important we’re physical. I’m not the same, I need time to ease into it and the more we spend time together the more we’ll grow closer together. I want passion just not straight away.

Anyway, I need advice because I don’t know if I should give him the benefit or doubt and still meet up for our first date today. The friction between us happened the day before yesterday. He ignored my messages I sent and didn’t call.

This morning he message me on WhatsApp (another app to the one we’ve been communicating on) trying to confirm our date. I know some people don’t like talking the day or sometimes days before the first date. I don’t know what to make of it. He’s been on social media and using it as if he wasn’t busy at all.

I could be over thinking it, he was big on communicating and feeling comfortable with each other. He said he’d never leave me feeling confused, neglected or unsure of his intentions. Except I do now.

I need advice, should I cancel our first date?

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* This article was originally published here

Hannah Waddingham on the pain (and joy!) she channeled for 'Ted Lasso' - New York Post

Hannah Waddingham on the pain (and joy!) she channeled for 'Ted Lasso'  New York Post

* This article was originally published here

Ex allegedly lied about his ex gf, im heartbroken

I had been dating a guy from work for 4 years (Ron) and we were inseparable - we never argued once or had tension. It was the easiest relationship I'd ever been in. Ron had a friend from his past (Rachel) and they had a relationship for 2 years less than a year ago ago but remained friends - I've never asked him much about this because I didn't care, and he told me they are just friends, and with the way I felt so secure around Ron, I never had to doubt what he felt for me. He pursued me for about 2 years before we dated for 4 years, which is crazy persistence. In our relationship he has shown his care for me time and time again. I've never felt unloved by him.

Ron and Rachel went for lunch. Rachel told our mutual friend Hannah that Ron admitted to her that he still had feelings for her and that he was dating me out of convenience amongst some other not nice comments. As the story goes, Rachel turned him down. Hannah relayed all of this to me, absolutely fuming at Ron. I was heartbroken at what I heard.

When I confronted Ron about this, he was shocked. He called up Hannah to find the truth who then denied that she said anything of the like to me. I cut off Hannah because whilst I appreciate what she told me (she put her friendship with Rachel on the line), her lying to Ron when that was the chance to confront him with what she alleges is the truth, was at my expense. It broke me and Ron.

Hannah to this day maintains that Ron did say those things, and she claims Ron and Rachel agreed to not tell me the truth, knowing that it would hurt my feelings. She claims they have admitted this in front of her. It is just so far from my reality of Ron that it crushes me everyday. I broke up with him because I spent months trying to piece together the truth - Ron claiming it is all a lie, Hannah claiming he is ofc going to lie to me and has admitted this to her personally, and Rachel blocked me at some point because she didn't want to get involved and didn't want me to ask her for the truth. It drove me insane.

Im heartbroken because I'm going through a breakup now that I never wanted - we were so good together, but I cannot trust or forgive Ron. Not least because everytime I get close to it, or he apologises to me for this situation that exploded, Hannah's words are etched in my head that 'Ron will never be honest with me because he and Rachel agreed not to.'

Frankly, the breakup is 30% of my pain right now. The other 70% is reeling from what feels like my reality to be broken:

1. Ron vs Hannah's extremely polar opposite accounts messed with my head for months. How will I ever know which version is right.
2. What Ron said about our relationship (allegedly) is so different to my experience of it. It was entirely a 50:50 relationship and he was the one who said he wanted this to lead to marriage. Only for Hannah to relay that he is dating me for convenience because I am still here after 6 years of knowing him, but that he has suppressed feelings for Rachel and tried to give her another shot. I couldn't believe it.

My reality is warped. I can't get over the rage and hurt I feel with never knowing the truth - did Ron betray me, did he not. Was what we had real, I will never know. I broke up with him because I couldn't make peace with not knowing if he broke my trust or didn't, but I miss him endlessly because we had it so good. I can't tell if he is a pathological liar (Hannah's view) or has had his words misconstrued (deep down, I feel like he did say those things. Because who wakes up one day and makes this rumour? and how else could Hannah have been SO angry at Ron on my behalf? and even the thought of him having put our relationship on the line like this, makes me resent him).

I don't know how to heal from lies and betrayal when I don't even know how deep the betrayal actually is, and I don't know what my reality is. I'm just sobbing everyday at what feels like enough people having messed with my head. Advice is so welcome :(

​

tl;dr: my now ex bf (Ron) who I had dated for 4 years and knew for 6 years allegedly told his ex girlfriend (Rachel) that he had feelings for her still and was dating me for convenience. I got word of this through our mutual friend (Hannah). Ron claims nothing of the like was said. Hannah claims him and Rachel have a pact to lie to me so that him and I don't break up. How do I make peace with my warped reality?

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* This article was originally published here

How to keep a healthy sex life with a partner that bring home his work stress?

My partner and I (both 23M) have been together for several years. We both graduated college last year, and he started a full time job that has him leaving every morning around 7am and getting home around 6pm. I’m currently halfway through graduate school and working about 25-30 hours a week for my practicum. It isn’t too bad in terms of my workload with school + practicum. However, my partner is always running on empty by the time he gets home. He doesn’t have the energy or the desire to have sex or participate in any kind of sexual intimacy. I am constantly disappointed with every day that passes that we don’t share that moment of connection and closeness for weeks at a time.

I’ve spoken to him about this several times ensuring that he never feels attacked during the conversation. My intention is always to make him aware of my feelings and ask for his help in finding a solution or a compromise. His response is almost always that he’ll do better or try harder or work on enforcing better work-life boundaries for himself. It’s to the point where I am over hearing apologies. He doesn’t need to apologize, I’ve made this clear. He isn’t doing something bad or wrong. At this point, apologizing is nothing more than an unproductive, unnecessary thing to say. I want him to hear that his partner is feeling like the relationship is not being taken care of the way it should be, and I care enough to seek out his help in bringing that beautiful life back to our aging relationship. We are just too young to be this old.

I am now finding myself getting angry with him over stupid things, and it is taking a lot of self-restraint to make sure I do not act on my unwarranted feelings. For example, he had a wet dream the other night and came in his sleep. I woke up as he was cleaning the bed off, and he told me what happened. Suffice it to say that I was immediately overcame with anger and was screaming to myself in my head, “Great, so he’ll get off in his sleep, but he won’t with me when he’s awake. How convenient!”. Obviously, I did not tell him this, and I’m not going to get mad at him for having a wet dream. It’s not like he can control when that happens. But, it made me feel unnecessarily upset regardless. I had to excuse myself from the room and make sure I was relaxed before I spoke to him again. I know that feeling this way is not good, and I don’t want to feel like this. But, I’m at a loss when it comes to navigating this problem any further. It seems like I just get more and more disappointed and frustrated the more our relational needs are pushed to the side.

Does anyone have any advice on how to navigate this? Has anyone had a similar problem to my partner, how did you work through it? If you were in my position, what helped you? I’m really reaching for straws at this point because I don’t want our relationship to suffer. However, it is really begin to affect me to constantly tell my partner how I’m feeling, and nothing changes.

TLDR: My partner has no energy for sexual intimacy because of his work stress. After multiple conversations discussing this over the past 6-8 months, I am still left feeling unheard and the situation remains unresolved. I no longer know what to do to improve the state of my relationship, and it seems like my partner is unlikely to change anytime soon. Please help me bring life back to my relationship.

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