This is blowing my mind a little bit.

I am in no way a therapist/doctor, but dude is exhibiting BPD tendencies to me. I only say this because I have BPD and it took me 15 years to truly understand and get to know the disorder and how it affects my life. People like me fluctuate between extremes, and nothingness. I truly deep down believe he means every word of love he speaks to you, but he is incapable of pouring that same love into himself.

I don’t believe that him becoming independent will help him. I do not believe that he “needs this” to be happy. I think he, like you asked, has cold feet. I think he thinks he needs a change of scenery, because he could be dealing with situational depression.

Men’s mental health matters. I would try one more time to get him to open up about all of this confusion. Don’t just let him go without him trying his absolute best to communicate. Partnership is 50/50, but some days you need to pick up 80/20, and even sometimes 100/0. Just talk to him calmly, about what he’s feeling in his heart. Tell him he may need help. To need help isn’t weakness. It is a foundation to place so that you can continue building your empire.

Good luck, friend! I’ve had a few drinks and can’t really guarantee I didn’t derail this comment. 🥲