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Conflicting Feelings About Relationships.

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Sweetheart, I have been around the block a few times, and this guy is nothing but grief in a bottle. You need to find someone who is stable. This guy is not. With all you are dealing with, CPTSD, you don't need to be dealing with his crap.
Thankyou, I agree he isn't good for me. I'm not planning on contacting him again. I've let him go. I just wanted to process the experience here and get it out of my system.
 
What @RussH said got me to thinking about something... in all my relationships, the guy also had some sort of major issue / mental health problem. Even though I didn't seek it out, just happened that's what I was drawn to I guess, it has *always* been a matter for me of... I need to be there for them, poor them, I need to focus on helping them, on being there for them, on being sensitive to their needs and making things good for them.

This sounds very similar to my own situation with the kind of men I've been attracting lately, and in my past. I used to attract men I felt like I wanted to fix or help with their problems, and eventually realised it was a way to avoid looking at my own stuff and working on myself. It may be that I am slipping into that old pattern here? Seems that way.

I'm very glad I conveyed my boundaries to him straight away and did not let him get away with treating me that way, rather than letting it slide. I stood up for myself and raised his awareness to his behaviour, which he did take on board. Win.
 
When you're with these guys do you even talk about yourself and your problems at all? Personally I feel like I am trying to seem normal or perfect or something. I've never confessed about my ptsd and that's partly one reason I am always alone. I was afraid to share and get rejected and hurt or harassed even, for my illness.

I know this wasn't directed at me, but I wanted to add my own take.

I have been rejected so many times, by family and people I lived with, that I no longer care so much. When he told me he had tinnitus and brain fog the first time after we met, I texted back and said I could relate to brain fog and that I had cptsd. I did not hear back from him, and when I saw him again a month later, he did not reject me but was happy to see me and wanted to hang out.

He asked me what caused the ptsd (he hadn't really heard of it before) and I didn't go into it but just said it was a series of events compiled one after another, and left it at that. I did not feel comfortable divulging that as I felt slightly as though he were silently judging whether my story was actually enough to cause ptsd. I had the distinct impression from things he said after that that he considered my stuff "not that bad"...which made me close up about it even more, and I had to bring it to his attention that he was continually butting in when I was speaking and talking over me, and that I needed to feel heard.

I think he got the message because he said "My friends usually tell me to shut up!" and said that he knew he does that (talking over people)
 
@Philippa Personally I feel better now that I have established some limits. We all know what people are capable of and how they will walk all over us and hurt us. I can only take so much.

Another thing is that, I know lots of people with mental health issues that play games and toy with people. In fact every person whether it was a relative or someone passing through who has been destructive in my life, who have hurt me with emotional abuse and sociopath games, has been mentally ill or sick in some way or another or at least acted like they were. So rather than be an excuse for his behavior, that could be the reason. Being sick doesn't mean that he can't be cruel. Being quirky or a cutey doesn't mean that he can't screw with you. He can use his eccentric quirks to charm you, make him seem more interesting, and distract you. Even if he's not you are still vulnerable and his actions affect you. You still have needs which aren't being met with texting and excuses. As for texting, it makes it so much easier for them to lie. You're not there with them and can't see their face. It's actually really childish and just convenient to them.

I know you said you don't want to be told what to do but at this point I would not respond to him, even if you already have. Just stop communicating with him, for at least ten days or two weeks. See what happens. Maybe he'll text more then stop when you don't respond. Or he might be more interested if you respond after two weeks. You're waiting by the phone. You should go out and get new numbers and talk to some other guys. The bar didn't work, but you could find some other kind of event or thing to go to, and meet someone there.
 
@Philippa Another thing is that, I know lots of people with mental health issues that play games and toy with people. In fact every person whether it was a relative or someone passing through who has been destructive in my life, who have hurt me with emotional abuse and sociopath games, has been mentally ill or sick in some way or another or at least acted like they were.
Totally agree here, and I've known quite a few people who do play games and emotionally abuse when they are unstable and sick. I think he is, on some level, playing some game, whether he is conscious of it or not?

The last text gave me a clear impression of emotional invalidation. He didn't want to look at what he knew deep down had affected me due to his behaviour and instead tried to make me out to be over reacting to what was really not that big of a deal (in his mind).

Being quirky or a cutey doesn't mean that he can't screw with you. He can use his eccentric quirks to charm you, make him seem more interesting, and distract you. Even if he's not you are still vulnerable and his actions affect you.

I hear you here. I really do. I'm aware that I was vulnerable and needy of all kinds of attention and affection and that leaves me open to people who like to screw with people.

You still have needs which aren't being met with texting and excuses. As for texting, it makes it so much easier for them to lie. You're not there with them and can't see their face. It's actually really childish and just convenient to them.

Definitely.

I know you said you don't want to be told what to do but at this point I would not respond to him, even if you already have. Just stop communicating with him, for at least ten days or two weeks. See what happens.

Yes, I agree with this. I wasn't meaning to sound unappreciative earlier. I do have issues with being told what to do. I understand that you are being caring though, and I do appreciate that.

Maybe he'll text more then stop when you don't respond. Or he might be more interested if you respond after two weeks. You're waiting by the phone. You should go out and get new numbers and talk to some other guys. The bar didn't work, but you could find some other kind of event or thing to go to, and meet someone there.

I've been thinking the same thing in the last two hours. I think you're right. He left the message so it sounded like he was letting me go and finished by saying "Take care" which I didn't trust at all. He didn't care about me, so why would he really care if I take care of myself?

I'm not going to wait by the phone for him. I considered returning his broken text, but decided to leave it, and see what happens. I have no time for people who play games like this. If he chases me he's gonna have to chase for a while for me to even register his existence. I do have other guys I can call on, and there are parties coming up that I am looking forward to where I can meet new people. thanks for the sound advice here. It aligns with my own thinking as well.

I'm sure I will be able to forget him soon...it was just a mixture of hormones, loneliness, neediness and genuine attraction that had me all in a bind before, but the more I think over it, the more I tell myself he's a dickhead and that's that.
 
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I still spent 2 nights (approx 16 hours) having fun hanging out with him, and liked him. We had a nice chemistry, which I haven't felt with anyone in years. I don't think it's unusual to think about someone you liked who f*cked you around for a whole day, is it?

@Philippa - How did he f*ck you around if you were having fun with him? (Sorry, that probably doesn't read how I meant it, but I'm genuinely confused.)
 
@Philippa - How did he f*ck you around if you were having fun with him? (Sorry, that probably doesn't read how I meant it, but I'm genuinely confused.)
He f*cked me around by arranging with me, three times, to take me out on a date and then cancelling on the day or the recent one...texting an hour before the lunch date saying he just got home from the pub and was drunk and hungover and needing to sleep.

I had fun with him on the night we met and friday night. These were seperate to the days when he was supposed to take me out on an official date.
 
@Philippa it really sounds like you were able to set some boundaries and are now sticking to them...which is awesome. I mean, I feel you on having spent time with him and heading into hope and dream-land, but like my friends told me about my ex... I wasn't in love with who is *is* I was in love with who he pretended to be, and I was holding out hope that one day he would be who I *wanted* him to be...

My close friend asked me, if I met him today, and he was starting off treating me the way he was at this very moment in time, would I still try to hard to make it work, and I said no way..he's being a jerk. I just want the old guy back. And she was like, there's your answer...you have to take what you have *now* and if that isn't what I want, then I need to save myself the heartache. I still didn't listen, it still took another year for him to completely devastate me and break my heart. But now I know, and I don't want to..can't..go through that again.

@jmni, I wasn't diagnosed until after my last relationship ended, and up til that point, I was bent on avoiding whatever I was feeling, so yeah, I did not ever talk to anyone I was in a relationship with about anything I went through / was going through. I didn't want to rock the boat or give them any reason to feel like I was a problem they wouldn't want to deal with...even though none of them ever thought twice about telling me all about their problems and expecting me to be understanding / putting myself last. So yeah, I was focused on being as perfect as possible..my last ex would tell me all the time even how perfect I was, thanked me all the time for being understanding and patient, and all the while I hoped that it would all pay off and be worth it in the end. But yeah, that did not happen.
 
Ok, thanks, I get it. No follow thru. He's history!

Yes, absolutely.

If your body is doing the biological clock thing, regardless of what your head is saying, then you need a completer/finisher, someone in it for the long haul.

Well, I pretty much decided to not have kids years ago, and have been mainly happy with that decision...but of course, that doesn't stop biology from happening, so it rears up every now and then. It doesn't mean I have to answer the call though, and I wouldn't unless the conditions and the person were just right.[DOUBLEPOST=1403896530,1403896337][/DOUBLEPOST]
@Philippa it really sounds like you were able to set some boundaries and are now sticking to them...which is awesome. I mean, I feel you on having spent time with him and heading into hope and dream-land.

Thanks, I really appreciate your kind words right now. Things have been rough. I was getting a bit lost in dream land, but I also had somewhat of a grip on reality as well, and did think about the little niggling things that were bothering me, and wondered when the bomb might drop. My last couple of experiences with guys have not been the greatest. Was hoping this one would be better...but nope. Actually he might just be the worst of them...and that's really saying something.

Apparently I am not as stable as I thought I was, or I would not be attracting so many unstable guys. I'm working on it. The 5 tibetan rites have been very stabilizing.
 
Well, I pretty much decided to not have kids years ago, and have been mainly happy with that decision...but of course, that doesn't stop biology from happening, so it rears up every now and then. It doesn't mean I have to answer the call though, and I wouldn't unless the conditions and the person were just right.
Just a heads-up from experience, if I may...no matter what we might decide, babies have the dangdest habit of showing up regardless! :whistling: It really helps to have their dad around for the duration. :tup:
 
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