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Relationship Partner with BPD (Straight and LGBT+) => Romantic Relationship | Conflicted About Continuing, Divorcing/Custody, Co-parenting => Topic started by: Shawnlam on April 17, 2018, 07:33:35 AM



Title: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Shawnlam on April 17, 2018, 07:33:35 AM
After another night of not sleeping again because my brain and heart are still at war over my exGF BPD I have to center myself and frankly decide today what the hell im going to do.(enough is enough). Like most of you said to me recently I need to pick one ,stay and give a 100%! Or go 100% but none of this let’s stay friends crap.Presently I don’t know where she stands either ,when we saw each other on Sunday the touching ,eye contact ,kissing and hugging were intense ,Her texts to me after were I love you and miss you ,I’m thinking of you.Most of the time after I’ve physically been around her she is very intense afterwards.BUT when time goes by she gets distant again a lot less texts and stuff ,I think she does it on purpose.I believe the feelings she gets when I’m around her are very intense for her , I think she may love me as much as a BPD can and it overwhelms her ,once I’m gone she gets nervous or anxious so keeps her distance to settle herself.

With that said I should be seeing her tomorrow for dinner and if she doesn’t cancel ( BPD people are so unreliable)... .I’m going to have to make a decision.I think


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: juju2 on April 17, 2018, 07:40:17 AM
Go easy on yourself.

It sounds like you need to maybe take some quiet time, meditate, let all thought meander past... .relax... .pause... .breathe... .exhale ... .inhale... .peacefulness... .
calm... .sense your breath... .let thoughts be... .question nothing... .let it be... .be present...
... .

I sense a frantic energy, if I can calm myself down, no decision has to be made now... .let me choose, let me get to my serene place, 

juju





Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Tattered Heart on April 17, 2018, 08:24:54 AM
Welcome to bettering. I'd like to second what juju6860 said. It seems like you are pushing yourself to make a decision that may not necessarily need to be made yet. You said yourself you aren't sure where she is or even where you are. Sure, it will help you with indecision to make a decision, but what if you just let things grow naturally. Just go to dinner. Hang out. Let whatever happens, happen.

But go in understanding that it's going to cause intense emotions and begin trying not to let yourself become overwhelmed with emotion. What can you do to curb the intensity?


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: waverider on April 17, 2018, 08:46:46 AM
Going in thinking you have to make a decision means you dont fully observe and you are likely to react to the moment. The moment is never a good indicator as it is unstable.

Observe and compare at sometime when your absent with all the other times and get an overall sense of the big picture. This should guide your choices, as the average is unlikely to change much in the long term. All the peaks and troughs will continue to fluctuate around this average. Inconsistency is the most consistent thing about BPD


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Shawnlam on April 17, 2018, 09:22:42 AM
True I need to seriously stop trying to forecast how the dinner will go ,I just need to go and let it happen.I should easily pickup on her emotions and mood and just maintain any positivity and go with the flow.I will know quickly if she does want to go back together if so I’ll feel it.I don’t know why I try to always analyze situations before living them


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Skip on April 17, 2018, 10:07:45 AM
After another night of not sleeping again because my brain and heart are still at war over my exGF BPD I have to center myself and frankly decide today what the hell im going to do.(enough is enough).

What do you mean, "enough is enough"?  

You broke up. You came here angry/frustrated. Then you missed her. You contacted her with an apology. You both met and there are still feeling on both sides. Things are tentative with her - you worried yesterday that breaking up twice has damaged the trust - and you are stressed/tentative.

Why are you stressing?

Seems like you are a very fortunate guy. This could have turned out very badly - and it still can if you don't get a hold of yourself. Then you will be stressing even more with fewer options. Read the Detaching Board. A lot of members would love to be where you are.

Shawn, you don't need to make a lifelong commitment here or be 100%. You certainly don't want to jump start the old relationship. That didn't work for either of you. It will not work again.

Just steer the ship to a safe harbor. Start slow and court her while you both resolve your tentativeness.

Change your thinking, approach, exectations... .you will know soon enough where this is going.

BPD people are so unreliable

Please stop this. For your own sake. She is not a Golden Retriever. She can read these feelings in you. My ex was more reliable and punctual than me. It's not necessarily a BPD thing.

Besides, its low EQ and weak talk and it doesn't help you or her. You've got to up your game - whether it ends up being her or someone else. This is the Bettering Board - you get no slack here.  :)

True I need to seriously stop trying to forecast how the dinner will go ,I just need to go and let it happen.I should easily pickup on her emotions and mood and just maintain any positivity and go with the flow.I will know quickly if she does want to go back together if so I’ll feel it. I don’t know why I try to always analyze situations before living them... .

I think you should analyze you.  :)  You are putting way too much on this dinner. Go, have a good time. If she digs in a little, listen, tell her you want to think about it and talk again.

Have a plan that avoids meltdown or controversy... .focus on having an enjoyable time, stay away from relationship talk, if she goes down that path - listen really carefully and say you want to thing about what she said and talk next time you get together.

Shifting gears... .

What was her re-occuring complaint about you in the relationship? What is yours?  Let's start there.



Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Shawnlam on April 17, 2018, 10:19:11 AM
Her  complaint before we broke up the first time was nothing really except she found it hard to convince me that she actually loved me. ( never understood that one).After we broke up the first time then with justification it was all about her thinking I’d leave again(keep in mind during that period I knew absolutely nothing about cluster b disorders in general) .Those were her main complaints ,occasionally I’d get the odd comments from her like  “your love is so strong for me it’s burning” or “ you are overwhelming in a good way”. You see I broke a lot of the alpha male hand book code on this little woman that I usually never do ever with other woman I’ve seen.I always had great success with my other relationships because I came off as much much stronger.On this one I fell hard in love fast and always felt I could never show her enough love ( pretty much like everyone on here).

My issues with the relationship were : lack of trust towards her , and her flip floppy attitude that nothing could please her or she misread everything.NOW and only NOW do I understand the flip flop attitude and most likely have the ability to deal with it.The trust issues that’s not going anywhere soon.


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Skip on April 17, 2018, 10:40:09 AM
nothing really except she found it hard to convince me that she actually loved me. ( never understood that one)... .

When your partner says something is a concern and we don't understand, we need to dig harder... .they may struggle to communicate it well and we made need to read into things. This is true for all partners.

I suspect that this is fear of vulnerability and it related to insecure attachment issues that she has (a lot of people have).  When a person has to fight there own fears of vulnerability (which is what you are doing now) its really serious stuff. Breaking up to be heard is not a good tool with a person like this. Save breaking up for when you are done.

My issues with the relationship were : lack of trust towards her , and her flip floppy attitude that nothing could please her or she misread everything.

What is it that you don't trust?


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Shawnlam on April 17, 2018, 10:54:25 AM
Anyone who still texts their old boyfriends can’t be trusted , same I. Reverse.How can I trust her


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Tattered Heart on April 17, 2018, 11:08:00 AM
Anyone who still texts their old boyfriends can’t be trusted , same I. Reverse.How can I trust her

That's a really big question to find an answer to. If you are starting this relationship again, you will have to be able to get past this. Relationships are built on trust. How is trust rebuilt? What does trusting her look like to you?

Could you lay out here what behaviors would be and would not be acceptable in your relationship? Take some time to look at your own boundaries. What are your values in regards to trust and trust worthiness in a relationship? I would not bring this topic up tonight. That's for a later date. But it's important that you do start looking at that now so you can measure your own progress.


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Skip on April 17, 2018, 11:19:06 AM
Anyone who still texts their old boyfriends can’t be trusted , same I. Reverse.How can I trust her

Can you say more about this? When? What? How many?

What is factually going on here?


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Shawnlam on April 17, 2018, 11:45:06 AM
Yeah she keeps in touch with her ex’s I think it’s a way of having plan b’s if that even makes sense .They text her and she texts back but I never read her texts just saw the names on her car navigation screen.I do know I was told she cheated on her last boyfriend with the previous one which was 7 hours away.But I also know her previous boyfriend left her three times taking all the furniture with him... .so can you call it cheating if the guy left? I don’t know . Frankly I prefer not to live in her past to be honest because rumors make for the worst assumptions.I think it’s safer to just focus on what she has done to me and they are as follows... .
Cancelling the whole seeing her family at Xmas and New Years
Cancelling dates and plans we had
Her booking trips with her friend(gf) some fishy and some normal but always last minute
Because we didn’t see each other much and she would book them on the one or two weekends I could see her angered me more
She also would promise things and never follow up on them examples( when she moved out of her moms she said you gonna come stay with me during the week baby?) then she never ever would invite me
She wanted to move together at the end of last year ,even went through with looking at homes to rent etc ,only to back out twice ?
This list honestly just keeps going on and on

So as you can see trusting her is almost impossible.Even tomorrows finer I’m like ... .probably 50/50 she won’t cancel.The good news is we aren’t together so now it franky doesn’t bother me.
In final I was always the one booking stuff or asking to go out etc etc... .I think one she asked me out.Now I know men are usually the leaders in a relationship but it’s nice to see it go both ways.Aftrr reading endless stories here many of the people on the site had the same issues  as myself where it always seems a one way street.THat doesn’t bother me as much BUT the trust thing does


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Skip on April 17, 2018, 12:19:29 PM
I think if her ex moved out and took the furniture, she has every right to date... .

Is there something concerning in her connection with ex boyfriends or is it an occasional catch up? If this bothers you, it will help to clarify what it is so that you can process it. Leaving it as vague and a smoldering ember isn't healthy.

Same thing with her active social life outside of your relationship. What is going on there. This is also vague. Are you only available a few days a month?  What is happening here?

So as you can see trusting her is almost impossible.Even tomorrows finer I’m like ... .probably 50/50 she won’t cancel.

Is this trust or inconsiderate/insensitive or taking you r for granted or not as committed as you would like?  These are very different things that require different types of responses. If you are mistaking trust for "not as committed" and you are handling it by breaking up, you are just making matters worse. You two might be in a dynamic where you seem like you have one foot out the door and she is responding by not putting all her eggs in one basket (not pointing fault).

It sounds to me like (just guessing) that she is either a lot more independent than you are used to or that she is not fully bought in to the relationship. It could also be that she is just selfish and self serving.

What do you think?

This could be that you two are sexually attracted but not that compatible in lifestyle.  You know, too good to leave, too bad to stay.

I think it will help to dig into these feelings and concerns.



Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Shawnlam on April 17, 2018, 01:52:15 PM
Honestly skip from what her ex best friend told me plus what I’ve observed she seems to be selfish yes I can’t lie.She is a mother of two with total custody of her two boys and the father gets to see him once every two weeks.With that said I understand her time is precious and hence it doesn’t bother me when she takes time for herself either BUT doing it last minute with no regard for my life ... .pisses me off for sure.Also she is immature for her age I tend to see at 29 and a mother of two she should have got her s$$&& together in a much more structured way.In her own words she doesn’t like to plan anything because she likes to do what she feels when she wakes up etc... .Now she never took the time and probably won’t to notice that’s probably why her entire life is a cluster f$&@k .She has zero ahead of her and it doesn’t look like it’s gonna get better anytime soon.Id go as far as saying she has narcissistic traits for sure ,more than most average people .

Hell just writing this to be honest is making me wonder why exactly am I getting back into this. Your questions are kicking me back into the mind frame of why I left in the first place .Her excuse because I did bring this up has been a mix of “you never give me a chance to plan stuff,or  my present living conditions is making me feel this way and I’m not myself ) however most people would realize with her looks and age this is solely not attributable to a present living situation.

Sexual attraction all though isn’t a problem for us is certainly not the attraction factor here.In all honesty I have no clue why she loves me (or says she does)? Is it because I’ve shown relationship interest vs only physical ? Why she wants a relationship when she acts like she wants to be single? I don’t know? The fear of being alone when she’s technically alone anyways? All good questions right? Well I’ve been asking this for a long time .When I asked her she said she wants a family life and a farther figure for her sons ... .but does nothing much to go for it? I could go on and on because even when I was with her ,this was a never ending hamster in the cage for me since the holidays .During the honeymoon mirroring phase it’s all I heard and it all tapered off in January,yet she gets super upset when I left? Then this week I get the texts of I’m thinking of you,goodnight etc So yeah welcome to my life


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Jessica84 on April 17, 2018, 01:53:48 PM
My BPDbf cancels plans/trips regularly. It can be very frustrating! It used to hurt my feelings. I'd get all dressed up, looking forward and eager to see him... .only to get a last-minute text saying "let's get together another night". Now, I just slip back in my jammies and have a girls night in. I don't think it's intentional (anymore). It's part of the impulsive decision-making of BPD. At some point, I had to accept that, and not take it personally.

Do you think you could accept this as her nature? Or is it a deal breaker for you?


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Shawnlam on April 17, 2018, 02:58:26 PM
Jessica I don’t really know if I can live like that it’s franky something that causes anxiety in my ,my entire career is about planning and order and hence my life as well.Im all for the opposites attract thing but there are limits


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Skip on April 17, 2018, 03:39:32 PM
So the issue is that she very independent (which can be selfish at times), is a free spirit, and holds on loosely in a relationship.

You live a different style, as Jessica says.

I don’t really know if I can live like that it’s frankly something that causes anxiety... .

So maybe this is not about trust, but rather compatibility. It's not about good and bad, trust and mistrust.

You said that "She found it hard to convince me that she actually loved me" and it didn't make sense or seem meaningful to you. Is this starting to make sense now? Could it be that she sees (or feels) that her level of commitment and lifestyle is not validating you in the way you want to be validated?

Now we are getting down to the values discussion. What is your value here? She is not going to wake up a different person tomorrow and neither are you. We know that. Are there changes/compromises that can be made to make this work (hard question) and can either or you be comfortable with them (harder question).



Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Jessica84 on April 17, 2018, 03:57:15 PM
Shawnlam - I hear you. Order, organization, and punctuality are super important to me. Skip raises a good point. This is about values. You value your time, you don't like it wasted. We respect our values by setting boundaries. When my bf flakes out, I make other plans. If he changes his mind 10 minutes later, I tell him I already made other plans (or I'm sorry, I already put my jammies back on... another night?) This was hard at first. I still wanted to see him, but not at his whim. I can't plan my life around what kind of mood he's going to be in next Tuesday!

Over time, he got a little less flaky... .but it still happens. I made peace with that. Not saying you should. Everyone has to look at their own values and decide which ones are absolute lines in the sand, and which are more flexible.


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Skip on April 17, 2018, 04:00:50 PM
Perfect example of values, boundaries, and not rewarding bad behavior.

 |iiii


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: NGU on April 17, 2018, 04:03:55 PM
Hell just writing this to be honest is making me wonder why exactly am I getting back into this. Your questions are kicking me back into the mind frame of why I left in the first place.

You're overthinking this. You’re all over the place. I can feel your brain spinning as you post.

Here are some examples of what you really don't have to concern yourself with right now:  

In all honesty I have no clue why she loves me (or says she does)? Is it because I’ve shown relationship interest vs only physical ? Why she wants a relationship when she acts like she wants to be single? I don’t know? The fear of being alone when she’s technically alone anyways? All good questions right? Well I’ve been asking this for a long time .When I asked her she said she wants a family life and a farther figure for her sons ... .but does nothing much to go for it? I could go on and on

Fortunately, you can boil everything down to simple facts that have been firmly established.
There’s a girl. You love her. You’re OK with changing a bit to see if it works out.

If you can’t fit a thought into a homemade flowchart (https://www.google.com/search?tbm=isch&source=hp&biw=1536&bih=727&ei=RlLWWrLeFsnWzwK21ZyADA&q=flowchart&oq=flowchart&gs_l=img.3... 0l10.1926.3044.0.3190.9.5.0.4.4.0.98.432.5.5.0... .0... .1ac.1.64.img... 0.9.470... .0.KoIbffa4dpQ), then it’s not important right now. Ah, the flowchart. The linear, stripped-down miracle of decision making.

I Might Reunite With My Ex and I’m Confused

START ---> Do you love her? ---> YES ---> TALK TO HER
Are you worried about the past? ---> YES ---> Did you decide to start over? ---> YES ---> TALK TO HER
Are you able to focus? ---> NO ---> You’re simply fighting your own emotions ---> TALK TO HER
Are you having second thoughts? ---> YES ---> START --->  :)o you love her?

I get the compatibility thing. The nagging questions. Sure, talk it out right now in this thread. Just don't forget the one-step-at-a-time concept to go along with it.

Dinner. Re-evaluate.


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Shawnlam on April 17, 2018, 06:18:15 PM
Well I had a long talk with her this afternoon , it’s official we are back together fffffff. Time to start learning real quick about how to handle this


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: NGU on April 17, 2018, 07:43:03 PM
Well I had a long talk with her this afternoon , it’s official we are back together

This has been quite a week for you.


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: once removed on April 17, 2018, 11:55:56 PM
it’s official we are back together fffffff. Time to start learning real quick about how to handle this

i dont know if ive ever heard so much dread at the prospect of getting back together  

but seriously shawn, do you want this relationship (really, no right or wrong answer)? because i think if you walk in with that attitude, it will blow up at the first fight.


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Shawnlam on April 18, 2018, 05:26:39 AM
No I do just nervous is all,even my therapist said take it slow and be a wise mind not a logical one and not an emotional one either.Im just nervous because it’s hard to retrain your mind 41 years later but I’m anxious to do it and I do want to do it.Even if let’s say this doesn’t work,having a wise mind will not be a bad thing moving forward in life.


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Skip on April 18, 2018, 06:24:22 AM
Good advice from your therapist. For anyone wanting info on WiseMind... .

(https://bpdfamily.com/message_board/images/mb/mindfulness.gif) (https://bpdfamily.com/content/triggering-and-mindfulness-and-wise-mind)
bpdfamily.com/content/triggering-and-mindfulness-and-wise-mind (https://bpdfamily.com/content/triggering-and-mindfulness-and-wise-mind)


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: NGU on April 18, 2018, 07:26:42 AM
The Wise Mind concept, translated:

The higher-functioning part of your brain fights with your caveman brain.

The caveman brain wants none of this nonsense. All it wants to do is breathe, eat, sleep and handle fight/flight.

The higher-functioning parts of your brain are losing. Because as separate parts, they're still shockingly self-destructive. One part gets sick of the constant failure and suggests a Group Meeting. Here's pretty much what they realize:

Im just nervous because it’s hard to retrain your mind 41 years later but I’m anxious to do it and I do want to do it.

Their post-meeting game plan:

Let the caveman brain do its thing. But we'll surround it. We'll stay a team and make sure everything goes through us before it hits the outside world.

That's Wise Mind.



Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: NGU on April 18, 2018, 08:16:16 AM
The Caveman Brain, Part 2: Relationships

The caveman brain likes soft things and procreating. Maybe woman. Woman good. I take woman.

Life doesn't work that way anymore. The higher-functioning parts of your brain are needed, but if they never had the Group Meeting, it's complete freaking anarchy up in there.

One part of your brain is like "Hey, I deserve everything."
Another is like "But... .but... .we're not good enough."
Another is pouting. "This is haaaaarrrd."
And then this nonsense: "Yeah, I know women like gentleness, but I'm a MAN. Real men are tough. Being gentle is a sign of weakness."
And to make matters worse, some rouge part clobbers everyone with "Yeah, but is she THE ONE?"

On and on and on.

Doesn't matter if someone's entire life is locked down.
Maybe they learned to eat their pride in basic training.
Maybe they learned self-control at their job as a corporate executive.
Maybe they're financially perfect. Debt-free and saving plenty.
Maybe they can cook and clean and all the other self-reliant/independent things people do.

Doesn't matter. Anarchy.

No parts are listening. Just shouting and freaking out. The resulting Group Meeting might last for weeks or months or years. Finally, a consensus is reached:

"OK guys, here's what we decided. There is no key to happiness. Life is a constant set of hurdles with some fun stuff thrown in. Our job is to appreciate the fun stuff. As for the challenges, we take one at a time and make a group decision. And then we casually re-evaluate as we go. Because this meeting is NOT adjourned!"

Cue gavel.






Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Shawnlam on April 18, 2018, 10:19:46 AM
Well last night I got some good tips from my therapist who technically understands why I couldn’t let her go just yet.Since it is obvious I’m someone that’s fairly hard headed , a little too proud and hates to be disrespected plus way right on the logic mind he suggested this.When she does something that will trigger me first step is to literally bite my tongue softly to not speak ,and put the phone down right away.Take 10-15 deep breaths and then reread the text or in case of being in person  excuse yourself to go to the bathroom and proceed with above.Then ask yourself why did she say or text the issue,what mood does it feel like she’s in? Is it a test she’s doing,is she just not thinking straight etc etc.Then be that pillar of strength that either needs to support her ,or discuss at a later date once calmer how what she did affected you always keeping in mind not to judge her with your words or actions.
He also said to keep your sanity in all this keep working on myself by working out like I used to,keep motorcycling and etc etc.


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: waverider on April 19, 2018, 09:52:16 PM
Well last night I got some good tips from my therapist who technically understands why I couldn’t let her go just yet.Since it is obvious I’m someone that’s fairly hard headed , a little too proud and hates to be disrespected plus way right on the logic mind he suggested this.When she does something that will trigger me first step is to literally bite my tongue softly to not speak ,and put the phone down right away.Take 10-15 deep breaths and then reread the text or in case of being in person  excuse yourself to go to the bathroom and proceed with above.Then ask yourself why did she say or text the issue,what mood does it feel like she’s in? Is it a test she’s doing,is she just not thinking straight etc etc.Then be that pillar of strength that either needs to support her ,or discuss at a later date once calmer how what she did affected you always keeping in mind not to judge her with your words or actions.
He also said to keep your sanity in all this keep working on myself by working out like I used to,keep motorcycling and etc etc.

Breathing space is your friend, immediate reactions are your enemy. The logical and the emotional are both capable of reacting too quick. The logic wants to make a decision and move on, but the emotional side needs time to digest this decision and provide input on how that sits with you emotionally, this consolidates the acceptance part


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: juju2 on April 20, 2018, 07:53:32 AM
S,

You are in the correct mind space.

You actually can make this work, 1%, as you say.

She, because of how you are being, can get healthy.
Healthy supports healthy.  You have a support group(us), you do not have to re invent the wheel!

juju


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Shawnlam on April 20, 2018, 08:18:34 AM
Oh god no there won’t be effort on my part to be in that 1% ,you know how well I’ve been sleeping knowing I only see her as a friend now? God so much  better it’s like I’m normal again! Yeah no there won’t be any actually real relationship between us.She took Wednesday off because her neck/ back are killing her cuz she only sleeps 3 hrs a night.So to be comforting on Thursday I told her “hey if your feeling down we can talk, use me if you need k?

All I got was , B.B. I know we haven’t seen each other and I miss you ,I wish I could make us a priority soon.?  Old Shawn’s reaction would have been “Christ why is she in a relationship I’m tired of this”. New Shawn “thank dear god I’m out of this relationship,and thank god she has no clue I checked out,but she’s happy cuz I’m giving her attention so she doesn’t feel alone”. Could I attempt to have a discussion and bring it to her attention? Been there done that don’t care to relive the complications.That evening as I was putting my motorcycle helmet on I couldn’t be happier and I slept like a baby ! Old Shawn is still be upset with no sleep ... .good luck to the 1% not me.Ill need help on here just to be friends with her ,that’s the maximum involvement I’m giving her.Working out so far


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Skip on April 20, 2018, 08:49:14 AM
thank dear god I’m out of this relationship, and thank god she has no clue I checked out, but she’s happy cuz I’m giving her attention... .

This "in, but not full in" is hard on you, no doubt. It would trouble me too. I have a very independent partner and I fall to second and third priority from time to time - she has a lot of family in town. My family is far away.

We work through it. I accept that her social calendar is more demanding than mine. She accepts that I like more of a day-to-day relationship. We find ways to do that.  

In the beginning, she only had a day a week to see me and I considered to stop calling and just drift on (no drama). I'm a social person so I could find a more attentive situation. I also considered to up my game with her - attract her more (not ask for more). I tried the latter and we really connected.

This is a more common problem than you think. Sometimes we can find/want to ways to solve it and sometimes it's just better to let it go. It may work, it may not. It's a fine line, and a very personal choice.

Old Shawn’s reaction would have been “Christ why is she in a relationship I’m tired of this”.

What did you say?

I wish I could make us a priority soon.

From her perspective (what she says), why is it hard for her to dedicate more time to the relationship? How far away does she live? What is her custody arrangement? How old are the children? Does she have family nearby? Does she work late?


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Shawnlam on April 20, 2018, 09:45:49 AM
To answer your two questions SKip the old Shawn was always anxious and annoyed because like you I enjoy actually being with my partner so it really made me upset seeing her not even 48 hrs every two weeks maybe.Thats what I used to be ... .now I couldn’t care a less to be honest what or who she does and if or if I don’t see her anymore in person.

To answer your second question she lives 21 minutes away by Ford F-150 and 8 minutes away by Honda CBR1000RR motorcycle


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Shawnlam on April 20, 2018, 09:46:43 AM
Oddly I answered the second question but it didn’t post ?


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Skip on April 20, 2018, 09:58:22 AM
To answer your two questions... .

Not sure you answered my questions, but that's ok.

Glad you "couldn’t be happier", "slept like a baby", and "couldn’t care a less to be honest what or who she does and if or if I don’t see her anymore in person".  



Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Shawnlam on April 20, 2018, 10:10:56 AM
Yeah to answer the questions lets hope this posts ummm I always felt she didn’t really care after the honeymoon period to see me as much.She spent more of her little free time with her gf almost always ,plus not having introduced me to her family etc etc.Yet she’s talk about moving in together and marriage etc yet after the 4th mont maybe 5th spending time with her was like pulling teeth.Id almost have to be a pain about it and when she did it felt like there yeah go done ,off to my life if that makes sense.I now know she just needs me at a phones reach not to feel alone I guess but it sure wasn’t a relationship.

Now fast forward to her life  now she’s just back to doing the same things it just doesn’t bother me anymore because i don’t and can’t take her seriously.With that said I believe she just said the whole “making us a priority thing” as a form  of manipulation or grasp for time that will go nowhere anyways .I couldn’t tell you more on why because it doesn’t make much more sense to me either ?


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Skip on April 20, 2018, 02:33:35 PM
I always felt she didn’t really care after the honeymoon period to see me as much.

Do you think the first 120 days was mostly a rebound from her breakup and selling the house? She was at a low point back then. Did the rebound maybe get too hot and crash when the two of you couldn't get on the same page (resolve conflict) over meeting families and the holidays?

The second 120 days has been a very different story. Pregnancy trauma. Unmet expectations/conflict. Two breakups. Communication breakdown. Resentments. Distrust.



Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Shawnlam on April 20, 2018, 03:17:12 PM
No I wasn’t the rebound guy because she’d been away from her ex about 6 months and she had a few (men) in between from what I was told.Besides that I really don’t know what happened and now even less .If I was a rebound guy then what’s with the clinging on now ? Kinda doesn’t make sense unless she’s playing games as revenge? But from what I’ve read BPD’s don’t usually waste their time too much when it’s over they just move on especially when they paint someone black(in my case no which makes even less sense).All in all its too much to try and make sense with her and her tactics or ways of doing things.Its almost laughable to try and follow her decisions one day she’s like let’s go to dinner with the kids then no ,then let’s reschedule then no... .it’s almost like she is living a life with numerous men in it playing them all like puppets ( just an analogy).Very tiring to understand and to any sane person not really worth it if you know what I mean ? To any sane person it’s actually very insulting, she’s not the president of the United States here so just stop with the flip flopping and control if you know what I mean?
Could be her form of revenge for me leaving her ,so now she’s playing games while getting comfortable with her plan B guy that’s now her plan A but what’s really the point yeah know? Just drives people away


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: once removed on April 20, 2018, 03:43:30 PM
shawn, before you came to the Bettering board, you were missing her, still loved her, and badly wanted to send a closure letter. you met for breakfast, kissed, and got back together.

then you moved to the Bettering board, and started offering complex, if unrealistic theories for simple things (the feedback youve received suggests this will not help), and you are wringing your hands, somewhere between being "totally at peace" and maddeningly frustrated. you dont want to elaborate/work through the problems in the relationship, and i see no plan for going forward.

i guess my quesion would be what happened in between moving from Detaching to Bettering?

are things moving too quickly? are you nervous?


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Shawnlam on April 20, 2018, 04:36:37 PM
A good answer would be that when I was in the detaching board and away from her for I believe 3 weeks the missing her amplified and the love never really went away .The yes I wrote the letter met her and emotions kicked back in .The literally within less than a week her stupidity started again with booking and cancelling things and it kick started why I left in the first place and the annoyance of her as a human being came right back with a vengeance! So now I’m just like “god what am I doing here after all the books,videos online of victims telling their story and how happy they are it’s over and how they moved on”  why did I go back? Even after reading codependency why can’t this sink in that it’s futile to be with this person,stop pitying her,stop caring for her,she sure doesn’t for you, and WALK AWAY NO CONTACT... .but here I am typing again like a fool.Here was this weeks crazy in a nut shell

Wednesday we were supposed to go eat but she had a bad neck and back which I saw on Sunday so no big deal.She said let’s go Friday I have no plans .Here is Friday and I text her after work asking “ hey I gott figure out out what I’m gonna eat”.What do I get ?instead of just a simple no or whatever I get a one sec text “I know she’s on the phone with her only friend” and the I get a screenshot of movie times and she says “ I’m taking the boys to a movie if you look at the times I don’t kiw where I can fit dinner in”?  Now any normal person would have invited their supposed to be bf to a movie with her sons and dinner but as usual she’s with her friend .So I return I just said ok have a good weekend rest that neck and back up . Boom nothing no more texts ... .Now I know I said I see her only as a friend but even my friends don’t lie or literally plan something with someone else while on the phone with me... .nobody I know and respect would do that to me or me to them it’s just not done .With that said I’m going to simply back totally off at this point and dear god I hope she gets the point and moves on.That way I can heal ,move on,and stop looking like a basket case on this forum and simply move totally on in life.( and restart one from scratch with what’s left of my dignity).


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: once removed on April 20, 2018, 05:03:33 PM
im going to be a little blunt here, and i say it to help and hopefully break through:

none of this has anything to do with anyone elses story, or victims. you are wildly overreacting to perceived slights.

i dont read any "crazy", shawn. you told her you were hungry and asked her what youre supposed to eat, and you seem to have expected her to read your mind, drop her plans, and accommodate yours; and you perceive anything else as some carefully calculated, conniving disrespect designed to ruin you.

im not saying this to help the trajectory of this relationship. i dont sense any interest in doing that. i say it because shawn, this is not a winning strategy in any relationship. if your goal is to move on and find a healthy partner, she will balk at all of it.


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Shawnlam on April 20, 2018, 05:21:10 PM
She booked this Friday ,she didn’t have to drop her plans she made new ones like usual and dumped me on the side ! She does this all the time , we make plans she breaks them  huge disrespect.She just wants to do what she wants to do when she wants how she wants ... .this isn’t how a relationship goes sorry but you are highly incorrect


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: once removed on April 20, 2018, 07:20:02 PM
 well shawn, it looks like i completely misread your post. i apologize for that, and responding to you based on my misreading.

the only part i would reiterate is what i said earlier: i dont sense that she breaks plans to punish you or out of revenge. shes flaky. its really rude, and id be immensely frustrated too.

With that said I’m going to simply back totally off at this point and dear god I hope she gets the point and moves on.

what if she doesnt?

Thanks again guys/girls time to go fix myself

i dont know how this relationship will turn out (it sounds like youve abandoned hope) but we have an entire board to do this kind of work. stick around, and if things go south, after some of the pain has tapered off, id encourage you to work with us on the Learning board. this happens to a lot of us again. there is work to do and lessons to learn.


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: once removed on April 20, 2018, 08:07:33 PM
The way she handled cancelling dinner plans is wrong on many levels.

what am I doing here after all the books,videos online of victims telling their story and how happy they are it’s over and how they moved on”  why did I go back? Even after reading codependency why can’t this sink in that it’s futile to be with this person,stop pitying her,stop caring for her,she sure doesn’t for you, and WALK AWAY NO CONTACT... .but here I am typing again like a fool.Here was this weeks crazy in a nut shell

No one get's tossed to the curb by someone they love and then feels happy because they responded by going no contact. You have to read what people say carefully. Yesterday you said "you couldn't be happier". You didn't really mean this. They don't really mean it.

You simply want this relationship to return to the positive and intense level of the first 120 days. That was great. You deeply resent the way she has backed off during the second 120 days (which has been handled badly on her part, no question). You are in the classic "too good to leave, too bad to stay" situation.

I think you are throwing tactics at this problem that are making things worse, not better. You have dismissed most of the advice and observations members have given you, rather than mine the ideas with them for how they might best fit your situation. Most members that were trying to help have moved on to help others because you are not engaging them.

Do you want to abandon the idea to make things better and move on to mostlty vent your frustrations at this point? Get support that the situation sucks (it does)? Are you basically in Stage Four (click the link to see Stage Three)?

Excerpt
Excerpt
Stage Four Rather than face the pain and overwhelm they expect to experience, partners who have reached this third 'defensive' stage, may progress to the forth and final stage of breakdown, characterized by a breakdown of basic trust between the partners, and increasing disengagement in the name of self-protection.
https://bpdfamily.com/content/your-relationship-breaking-down
 


Title: Re: Time to stop playing pong with myself
Post by: Shawnlam on April 20, 2018, 08:21:54 PM
Well it is what it is at this point then I guess .I won’t be writing any farewell posts but I will thank everyone here for all the help and information they gave me.Im at a point where call it stage 4/5 whatever  I’m tired of looking and feeling like a jerkoff to be honest with her.Ive lost enough dignity,pride,self respect for one person who couldn’t give a damn about me and is statistically unable to change in any significant way regardless of therapies ,the percentile is so small I equate it to playing the loto.Ill have to side with the far left side of the internets view on BPD’s,like Paul erm and so many others... .once there is abuse move on fast and abandon hope either physical or mental .I luckily only felt the mental but more than enough to last a lifetime.Thanks again guys/girls time to go fix myself ... .all the best in your endeavors