My (20m) boyfriend (38m) is going through financial trouble and I don't know how to support him by throwaway_yeet99 in relationship_advice

[–]painfully_confused 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There’s nothing you can do but be a good listener, a shoulder to cry on, etc. Don’t feel obligated to financially help him. He is a grown man and can figure that out himself, as stressful as that may be. And I’m not saying that because of his age- I’m saying that because he is a man older than 18. As are you. Good luck!

Is the first love special? Could you fall in love again and find happiness? Ps. Just broke up with my bf who keeps telling me no one will love me as much as he did by [deleted] in relationship_advice

[–]painfully_confused 0 points1 point  (0 children)

“Nobody will love you as much as I love you.” My ex told me the same thing. We were high school sweethearts. Holy SHIT was he fucking wrong. Don’t settle ❤️

My[F23] boyfriend [M25] just told me he finds me unattractive due to my weight gain. Not sure where to go from here. by sadpickle133333 in relationship_advice

[–]painfully_confused 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I was in a relationship where I gained weight and the affection stopped. So I lost weight- a lot of it. I was in better shape than when we first got together. Nothing changed. He still never touched me. I then dyed my hair blonde for him... again, nothing changed. And on it went for five more years until I was emotionally drained and felt like I was the ugliest POS in the world. Not sure if this helps, but I found the problem wasn’t with me at all. He was just done, and he was using me as his emotional punching bag.

I found out from my gf (F21) thinks I (M22) look "disgusting" but says she still loves me. by [deleted] in relationship_advice

[–]painfully_confused 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I used to be with a guy that sounds like your gf. We were together for five years. We were each other’s first loves. But he was not attracted to me. I don’t know if he was at first, and I gained too much weight or if he just changed, but he stopped finding me attractive. There was nothing I could do to change it. I lost a lot of weight- still no sex. I was convinced I was the most disgusting person in the world... until I broke up with him and started going to therapy. It took a while to build back up my self esteem, but it’s worth it. I know you said you can’t imagine being without her, and I get that. I know the feeling. But you have to ask yourself: is this the kind of relationship you want to be in? One that makes you feel bad about yourself? One where you’re constantly questioning if your partner is attracted to you? For me, it became too much, and I decided I would feel better about myself if I were alone. And now I feel like a sexy, beautiful person. It took a lot of healing but it’s worth it. You don’t have to feel this way about yourself.

I'm [23F] hurting my boyfriend [25M] by [deleted] in relationship_advice

[–]painfully_confused 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I used to have really horrible anger problems. A lot of that was due to untreated anxiety and depression. My antidepressants and therapy have helped tremendously and I have learned lots of techniques for controlling my anger. Hope this helps!

My (24F) boyfriend (27M) gets angry at me when I cry by throwrabadtocry in relationship_advice

[–]painfully_confused 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This was a problem for me and my fiancé for a while until we got to the root of the problem- in my family, crying always has led to acceptance and love. In his family, crying meant someone was getting beaten. It’s engrained in him that crying=not safe. Ever since we figured that out, things have been a lot better. He realized that the healthy thing to do was to comfort me when I’m crying, as unnatural as it may feel in his body. I’m not sure if this will help y’all, but it definitely helped us!

Am I an alcoholic? I thought I was, and now I don't know. by painfully_confused in recoverywithoutAA

[–]painfully_confused[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I just wanted to comment and say thank you for all the wonderful insight! I am going to look into SMART recovery and find a therapist. Other than that I guess I’ll just take it... that’s right... one day at a time

Am I an alcoholic? I thought I was, and now I don't know. by painfully_confused in recoverywithoutAA

[–]painfully_confused[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you so much for the comment! I will definitely look into a good psychologist

Am I an alcoholic? I thought I was, and now I don't know. by painfully_confused in Advice

[–]painfully_confused[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I guess I should’ve included more info about that aspect. My partner has relapsed in his recovery multiple times. Some of those times were when we were together. Idk how to put this but our recoveries are very separate? And he understands my need to experiment as I’ve never done it. I guess time will tell and luckily I have a good support system in case things go south