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Self worth and anxiety

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  • #283729
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    Hi everyone, I’m back with pretty much the same problem I usually come back to this forum for!

    I seem to still be caught up in the same cycle with the men that I date and how I react to certain situations and managing my self confidence.

    I have been with a man for two months now and things were going ok. We have a lot in common, want the same things in life etc. I’m finding out now however that he is struggling emotionally. He had a close friend pass away a few months ago and has told me that he has struggled the last few years trying to connect with people and Amy’s he feels emotionally unstable.

    I seem to keep attracting these type of guys. I care about him and he care about me. I talked with him last week and said it feels like he’s not that excited about me and us anymore. He said he likes everything about me, loves spending time with me, but still can’t get there emotionally. He kept saying he thinks something is wrong with him and doesn’t know what to do. I mentioned him talking to someone and he said he might look into it. As far as we go, I said I don’t want to be strung along if he isn’t feeling it, and said that maybe we should take some time apart so he can decide what he wants. He made a comment about not wanting me to go but not wanting me to stay either.

    It was very emotional and we were both crying. I heard from him a couple days later and he said he was just doing ok and was thinking of me. Since we left things kind of unclear, I asked if we could meet up this weekend, so we are.

    I am driving myself crazy over thinking every situation. I have done counselling, exercises, meditations but still have this strong sense of amxiety when I get into any relationship and I’m not sure what else to do.

    .

    #283757
    Mark
    Participant

    Heartbrokengurl,

    I believe we keep repeating a pattern of relationships until we 1) are consciously aware of the underlying belief/issue/wound and 2) we start healing from that wound.  Usually that wound/belief/pattern comes from our family-of-origin where we do not get the necessary nurturing from our mother and/or father.  For me, I had a mother who was angry toward men.  I kept attracting angry women.

    You said you keep attracting “these guys.”  A previous post you mentioned that your therapist observed that you kept attracting emotionally unavailable men.  Keep working with your therapist on that.  Check out Anxious Attachment Style.  Pursuers with an anxious style are usually disinterested in someone available with a secure style. They usually attract someone who is avoidant. The anxiety of an insecure attachment is enlivening and familiar, though it’s uncomfortable and makes them more anxious. It validates their abandonment fears about relationships and beliefs about not being enough, lovable, or securely loved.  …

    anxious types tend to bond quickly and don’t take time to assess whether their partner can or wants to meet their needs. They tend to see things they share in common with each new, idealized partner and overlook potential problems. In trying to make the relationship work, they suppress their needs, sending the wrong signals to their partner in the long run. All of this behavior makes attaching to an avoider more probable. When he or she withdraws, their anxiety is aroused. Pursuers confuse their longing and anxiety for love rather than realizing it’s their partner’s unavailability that is the problem. It’s not themselves or anything they did or could do to change that. They hang in and try harder, instead of facing the truth and cutting their losses.

    https://www.justmytype.ca/date-someone-anxious-attachment-style/

    https://www.yourtango.com/2018314056/six-signs-you-have-anxious-attachment-style-love-how-affects-your-relationships

    Good luck,

    Mark

     

    #283799
    Anonymous
    Guest

    Dear Heartbrokengurl:

    Welcome back. Feb 15, 2017 was the first day you posted her, you just had a breakup at the time with a boyfriend of 2.5 years: “He has some anger issues, and I have trouble with intimacy. He always brings up sex and says talking to me about it is like pulling teeth. I don’t think I am like that, but in any event, he does… Now I’m heartbroken”.

    March 9-10, 2017, you wrote: “I keep getting this urge to just date right away because I can’t stand the loneliness… I joined a dating site… I’m extremely shy“.

    March 26, following seeing your ex for the purpose of picking up your belongings, you wrote: “Seeing him though made me realize that I’m not in love with him anymore”.

    April 1: “I went on my first date last night, and it was nerve wracking but amazing. He was such a great guy and we got along so well… I woke up with  a smile on my face today! We had some great kisses at the end of the night and said we hoped to see each other again”.

    I didn’t read your posts following April 2017, but to the best of my memory, April 1, 2017 was the start of the following pattern: you meet a man in person, think the world of him and he of you, the date goes great, and very quickly, sometimes following one night of sex, he breaks up with you.

    The reasons the men break up with you so soon may have to do with what your ex boyfriend told you, which I italicized above, as well as the following, which you shared April 1, 2017: “Another issue that I’m dealing with, is that my ex boyfriend unfortunately passed on an STD to me when we first started dating. Now I’m stuck with this thing, and have to go through the process of being scared as hell having to tell him, or any future dates, if it gets to that point. I am scared of being rejected because of it”.

    It is very unfortunate that your boyfriend of 2.5 years passed on an STD to you (you shared later that it is genital herpes), and it must be a big problem for a woman who is “extremely shy”, as you shared early on.

    Would you like to respond to this post to you? I would like to understand better and maybe we can both understand better, and hopefully something good will come out of it.

    anita

    #283801
    Valora
    Participant

    To add onto what Mark said (which I also agree with 100%), is it possible you have a fear of intimacy, commitment, or abandonment or some combination of the three?  A fear of intimacy, especially, can be sneaky. Even if you’re the type who would love to have someone close to you and have a close, intimate, safe relationship, you can still be afraid of it for the possibility of pain that comes with that type of relationship if you break up. Usually a fear of abandonment comes with a fear of intimacy.  If you date emotionally unavailable men, it provides a protective barrier because they never get tooooo close.

    #284095
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    Thanks so much for your insight everyone! Much appreciated.

    Mark:  You’re so right, and reading this, I feel like it reflects me in relationships almost exactly.  Very interesting, and worth looking into.

    Anita:  I have seemed to always struggle with intimacy, I seem to get into my head a bit (or a lot), when it comes to sex, which I’m sure my partner can sense.  The STD issue also weighs heavy on me sometimes, and has brought me quite a bit of shame.  Fortunately, my guy now actually has it as well, so we share that bond.

    I am still shy, but I’m getting better with it.  But yes, the sex issues could be something to look into as well.

    Valora:  You could very well be right! I have thought of that before.  As much as I want a relationship, I think I’m scared, so maybe I am attracting unavailable men for that reason.    Lately, I have been thinking a lot about my dad, and my failed relationship with him.  I think him leaving has had more of an effect on me than I thought.

    I did spend time with my guy last night.  It was very emotional and we talked at length how we are feeling.  He is still struggling with his feelings for me.  He thinks he should be feeling more for me at this point (after two months).  I tried to tell him sometimes the best relationships grow over time slowly.  The relationships that I have had where it started out really strong never lasted.  He keeps saying I’m everything he wants, and when he thinks about the future with me, it looks very positive.  Hes just not sure he can get there with me.  He did say he’s willing to give us more time to see, but he is scared of hurting me.  I’m scared too, but think its worth seeing what can happen with us.

    He also mentioned it could be him, as he has felt disconnected from everyone for the last few years since his engagement ended.    I text him last night and said I hope I didnt talk him into something he doesn’t want, and he said ‘no you didnt.  I have been thinking about it a lot.  I want it to work’.

    Part of me wants to just end it, because I dont want to be with someone who doesnt feel the same way, but what if he can get there? It could be great….I’m torn.

    #284105
    Anonymous
    Guest

    Dear Heartbrokengurl:

    You are welcome. I think it will  be a good idea to attend short term couple therapy with  your current boyfriend or perhaps ex boyfriend, for the purpose of you gaining better insight into what is happening.

    Maybe the guy will be able to communicate to you in a therapy setting, aided by the help of a capable therapist, what he may feel uncomfortable to communicate to you in a personal setting. And maybe you will be able to communicate to him in that setting what you are uncomfortable to communicate to him in a personal setting.

    anita

    #284113
    Anonymous
    Inactive

    I would actually really love that, but suggesting therapy at only 2 months in scares me.  I’m not sure how he would take that.  He has talked about seeing a therapist to deal with his issues though.

     

    #284127
    Anonymous
    Guest

    Dear Heartbrokengurl:

    I suggest that you suggest couple therapy to him not for the purpose of making this two month long relationship last longer, but for the purpose of you gaining insight into why this relationship  is not working. It may give you insight about why previous relationships didn’t work out as well, and therefore help you in the future.

    Because he has his own issues, this will be an opportunity for him as well to gain insight. Basically, the purpose would be to learn and become wiser.

    anita

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