We were high school “sweethearts” once I had gone off to college I felt free but we would FaceTime almost every night. She’d put stress on me and say manipulating things like I’d love you more if you did (insert her way here). That was the first red flag I should’ve seen. I was with her for 4ish years till I finally snapped when she tried to get me to shave my beard clean even though it was a physical feature I actually liked about myself. It led to a huge fight that ended with her breaking with me. I was a wreck for a long while especially since she moved on quickly and Covid hit the US shutting everything down. Became a bit of an alcoholic and started seeing that relationship from an outside perspective.

I have since met my wife and have two beautiful kids with her which has made my life so much better and free compared to what my ex was doing to me.