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“Apparently He’s Into Men Now”: 30 People Who Regret Not Leaving Their SO Sooner

“Apparently He’s Into Men Now”: 30 People Who Regret Not Leaving Their SO Sooner

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Happily-ever-afters are rarer than you might think. According to research, 85% of people will experience a breakup in their lifetime, while two-thirds of couples end up breaking up within half a year of becoming parents for the first time. The reality is that not everyone is compatible, nor is everyone willing to work hard on their flaws. And sometimes, the signs are clear for everyone to see.
Internet user u/peachsnatch sparked a vulnerable online discussion on r/AskReddit after asking everyone to share what their exes have done that should’ve made them leave right then and there. Scroll down for their stories and what major relationship red flags look like.

#1

“Apparently He’s Into Men Now”: 30 People Who Regret Not Leaving Their SO Sooner
She hit me. A lot. She was also verbally abusive and made fun of my PTSD from military service. I finally worked up the courage to leave a few months ago.
85points

#2

“Apparently He’s Into Men Now”: 30 People Who Regret Not Leaving Their SO Sooner
Told me “he’s just a cat, you’ll be okay.” When my best friend died.
80points

#3

“Apparently He’s Into Men Now”: 30 People Who Regret Not Leaving Their SO Sooner
She was at my place, said she had to go home. I said something along the lines of "okay, have a safe trip back." She got mad at me for not fighting for her to stay longer. It felt so immature. I have no interest in games, only clear and open communication. I dumped her the next day.
55points

No relationship is perfect, sure, but they’re not all made equal. Happy and healthy relationships require a ton of consistent effort to maintain, as well as a lot of compatibility between the partners. Good communication, transparency, trust, honesty, mutual respect, a willingness to compromise—without these things, the relationship might not last very long.

There’s a difference between yellow flags (which tell you to slow down in the relationship) and red flags (which tell you to get out of the relationship ASAP). Clinical psychologist Wendy Walsh, PhD, told Verywell Mind that some examples of red flags include a history of violence, chronic cheating, or substance abuse. Meanwhile, a yellow flag “might include difficulty with emotional communication that the person is aware of and working on.”

#4

“Apparently He’s Into Men Now”: 30 People Who Regret Not Leaving Their SO Sooner
Chasing me down the highway after a fight, passing and braking in front of me until I pulled over. The knots you can tie yourself into at 20 to convince yourself that reckless and abusive behaviour is somehow romantic is absolutely insane.
49points

#5

“Apparently He’s Into Men Now”: 30 People Who Regret Not Leaving Their SO Sooner
When I got the call that my grandmother had unexpectedly passed, I was understandably distraught. The usual meltdown with tears and wailing from the utter shock of the whole thing.

He apparently “couldn’t handle” the state I was in and was very upset at my reaction. So I ended up comforting him the whole night/day after instead of properly grieving the loss of someone who was essentially my second mother.
48points

#6

“Apparently He’s Into Men Now”: 30 People Who Regret Not Leaving Their SO Sooner
Disrespected me only "joking".
45points

Some other major signs that your relationship probably won’t work out is if you and your partner have extremely mismatched life goals. For example, if you want to get married and have kids while they don’t, there’s not much of a future there. Similarly, if you dream about living in the suburbs or on a ranch in the countryside while your partner wants to stay in the city, you might have a hard time moving forward. (Unless you sacrifice all of your hopes, dreams, and goals for them, but that’d only lead to resentment and frustration from your side.)

Other red flags include excessive jealousy and distrust, which indicate that your partner is very insecure and has issues with control. A good rule of thumb is to rethink your relationship if your partner is excessively controlling. If your partner tries to control who you meet, where you go, what you wear, how you spend your hard-earned money, and what you do online, it’s definitely not healthy.

#7

“Apparently He’s Into Men Now”: 30 People Who Regret Not Leaving Their SO Sooner
Making me feel bad for bringing up something that made me uncomfortable, insecure, sad, angry, or any other emotion.
44points

#8

“Apparently He’s Into Men Now”: 30 People Who Regret Not Leaving Their SO Sooner
Manipulating me into not going out, seeing friends, meeting new people, having hobbies on my own. Basically anything that caused us to not be together 24/7.
44points

#9

“Apparently He’s Into Men Now”: 30 People Who Regret Not Leaving Their SO Sooner
Ex number 1 (wife) - Banging other dudes
Ex number 2 - Ambushing me in my sleep and beating the s**t out of me
Ex number 3 - The third or fourth time I had to make sure she stayed dressed while carrying her out of a formal work event

I got myself into counselling after seeing a pattern.
44points

At what point did you realize that you had to leave your exes, dear Pandas? What were the biggest red flags that you saw in their behavior?

What advice would you give someone who is in a toxic relationship but is scared of breaking things off? Share your thoughts in the comments.

#10

“Apparently He’s Into Men Now”: 30 People Who Regret Not Leaving Their SO Sooner
She spat in my face during an argument. I should have ended it there, but I was dumb enough to stick around a couple of weeks more, when she did it again.
42points

#11

“Apparently He’s Into Men Now”: 30 People Who Regret Not Leaving Their SO Sooner
Consistent disrespect, belittling or talking down, especially in front of others.
42points

#12

“Apparently He’s Into Men Now”: 30 People Who Regret Not Leaving Their SO Sooner
One night my cat was dying and I had organised to go and take him to be euthanised. He said why spend money when he could just hit him over the head?
In the same night I came back from the vets to bury my beloved kit cat, he thought I was being unfaithful (I now know projecting) and went through my phone as I sat and cried.
He didn’t find anything except contacts he didn’t know- he created a group what’s app thread on my phone, with all male contacts (my bosses, colleagues, my brothers, cousins, etc) and sent nude photos he’d taken of me and posted in that chat.
I feel one of my brothers has never been the same with me & the horror of having to go to work the next day is something I’ll always carry.
42points

#13

“Apparently He’s Into Men Now”: 30 People Who Regret Not Leaving Their SO Sooner
Threw my phone off a 7th story balcony while raging drunk, convinced that I was cheating on her....yeah kept dating her for another two years RIP me.
41points

#14

“Apparently He’s Into Men Now”: 30 People Who Regret Not Leaving Their SO Sooner
In my first serious relationship, there was a lot of s**t he did that I turned a blind eye to because I was desperate to be loved. I think a major one was that he would grab and jerk my steering wheel around at high speeds and laugh that I was scared. People who do that do not care about you. I should've left before it even started, but when you grow up with abuse, it looks like love. It takes a lot to realize it's not normal and that you deserve better.
39points

#15

“Apparently He’s Into Men Now”: 30 People Who Regret Not Leaving Their SO Sooner
Man. Where to start. No didn't mean no. She cheated on me. Threw knives at me. Held a knife to my throat in a argument. Tried to run me over a couple times. Lied. A lot. Spilled personal secrets like they meant nothing.
38points

#16

“Apparently He’s Into Men Now”: 30 People Who Regret Not Leaving Their SO Sooner
When he broke my ribs and my hand. But instead I forgave him... that time.
36points

#17

“Apparently He’s Into Men Now”: 30 People Who Regret Not Leaving Their SO Sooner
She wouldn’t get divorced… Her and her husband were separated and living separate lives but she was still legally married. I asked and pleaded for to get divorced for years. By year 5 along with other problems we had i bailed. I should have never of stayed as long as i did. Lesson learned.
34points

#18

“Apparently He’s Into Men Now”: 30 People Who Regret Not Leaving Their SO Sooner
He beat my dogs. That should've been the end of it, but the real end of it was when he threatened to beat my kid. I still feel ashamed that I didn't leave long before that.
34points

#19

“Apparently He’s Into Men Now”: 30 People Who Regret Not Leaving Their SO Sooner
Cheated on me at the start. She said she was sorry and I thought we could move from it. We didn't.
33points

#20

“Apparently He’s Into Men Now”: 30 People Who Regret Not Leaving Their SO Sooner
In June of last year I spent nearly a month in hospital. After I finally got discharged I get home and she tells me that she got the guest room set up for me. Her excuse for making me sleep in the guest room was "you're on penicillin and I'm allergic to it". It didn't make sense to me at all and stung so much after almost a month of having very little human interaction.

About six months later I found out that she was cheating on me while I was sick.
33points
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