10 Painfully Honest Signs It's Time To Leave Your Partner
If these signs sound familiar, your love life is dead.
wundervisuals, vadimguzhva | Canva When you’re in love with someone the whole world seems like a magical place. You’re happy and want to tell everyone how you “just knew” that it was love at first sight. While you may think that these feelings are forever, sometimes that just isn’t so. What happens is that when the passion fades, no one wants to talk about it's absence. Since long-term relationships go through rough patches now and again, it makes knowing if you're just out of love really tough. If that little voice in your head is telling you that things have changed for the worse, here are 10 signs to confirm that.
Here are 10 painfully honest signs it's time to leave your partner:
1. You’re constantly irritated by your partner
There comes a time in every romantic relationship when partners find themselves annoyed by one another. While this is perfectly normal, if you are constantly irritated by him or find everything he does frustrating, it might be a sign that you’re no longer in love.
2. Your eyes are wandering
When you and your man first got together you had no interest in looking at or for other men. So, if you catch yourself checking out other guys now, this is probably a big red flag. If anytime you go out with the ladies, to the grocery store, or online you’re looking at other men, then you may need to take a look at your relationship. It’s one thing to notice an attractive man, but if you’re constantly leading with your eyes, you’re leading yourself in another direction.
3. You’re no longer physically attracted to your partner
When you are madly in love you can’t keep your hands off your partner. However, when you may no longer be feeling the love, you also don’t feel attracted. You start finding excuses to not touch each other anymore, or you blame not wanting to kiss your man on things like not liking PDA. Simply put, when you start cringing at the thought of being intimate with your guy then all signs point to the love being gone.
4. You aren’t excited about the thought of being with them anymore
Again, looking at the beginning of your relationship you were excited to see your partner and you missed him when he was away. Sure, it’s normal for the excitement to settle over time, but if you find yourself missing the butterflies and feeling nothing for your guy then there's probably not much left.
5. You stopped being intimate
A common sign that your love has left is if your intimate life has left as well. Once intimacy is off the menu, then there’s nothing left to order in this relationship. Since intimacy can make couples feel close, NOT having that intimacy between you can make you feel like you’re oceans apart. If you don’t feel the urge or attraction to your man anymore then you may no longer be in love with him.
6. You're more focused on yourself than your relationship
This is a hard one to face, but if you only care to make plans for yourself or think about a future that has just YOU in it, then it may be because you subconsciously realize you’re no longer in love. Ask yourself if you consider your man’s wants and needs when planning things. Do you find yourself disregarding his thoughts and feelings? Recognizing these habits can tell you a lot about your feelings.
7. Your partner is the only person you hang out with (and you're not happy about it)
If you start to realize that your man has become your only best friend, this might be a problem. It’s natural for couples to become best buds, but if the best friend role has taken over and the boyfriend role vanished, it may be because you’re holding on to a friendship instead of a romantic relationship. That’s not to say there’s something wrong with being B.F.Fs, just ask yourself if you are still in love with your man, or if you’re just loving his friendship.
8. You’d rather spend your time with someone else
If you find yourself spending all your free time with friends or co-workers instead of your partner, then it may be because you’re no longer in love. Again, this may be a hard realization to accept but if you’ve jumped from spending all of your time with your man to spending no time with him, then it’s time to face the music.
9. You feel like something is just ... missing
You may know by now, that falling out of love is hard to explain. It’s not easy to put this feeling into words, but if there’s one thing you can comprehend it’s that something is missing. Maybe you’re longing for the good old days, or wondering what your life could be like if you followed different dreams. Either way, this feeling of emptiness is a big sign that you’re ready to move on without him.
10. You argue constantly
When you’re in love even the smallest argument can feel like the end of the world. So, if you’re always arguing, then guess what? It may not be fixable. Arguing is a normal part of life and relationships, but if you don’t remember the last day you went without a tiff, then it may be time to acknowledge the elephant in the room. If you’re willing to get back on track and bring the love back into your lives — that's great. But if not, it might be time to throw in the towel and move on to bigger and better things.
Amy North is a blogger, relationship coach, and best-selling author. She has appeared in British Baker, Genetic Literacy Project, The Grocer, Adotas, Internewscast, and more.