I too made all the wrong mistakes, and it's gotten bad

Little over two weeks ago, my (now) ex and I had a falling out, the second of it’s kind. She tended to turn angry with me if I was emotionally unavailable and I always did my utmost to be available as often as I could. But let me backtrack a little first.

I am no doubt going to get some flack for this but, neither my ex nor I were single when we were seeing each other, but were both in unhappy relationships. However since we both have kids in said relationships, it was always going to be complicated. I never wanted it to be an affair, I wanted to marry the girl and have a future together. I was slow on the uptake on that one through initial apprehension, whereas she was both feet in the deep end. As time went on, those tables turned; I wanted the relationship to develop into something more serious, whereas her initial 100mph approach mellowed into preferring things to be on an affair level.

Throughout the course of the relationship, we grew incredibly close, we both felt a bond that was impossible to describe. We were constantly drawn to each other, we could talk about literally anything and we could share any part of ourselves without ever being afraid. Nothing sexual was ever dirty, and there were no holds barred. Every second of embrace felt like the first time, for both of us, and any issues we had from our past got massaged out by the other person eventually. We were soul mates, kindred spirits and “karmic lovers” (as she would call it). We would encourage the betterment of each other’s lives in every way, right up to supporting career choices in every way possible. There was nothing I wouldn’t do for that girl, and she would equally go out of her way for me.

However, there were times when we would clash. I have had an extremely difficult 4 years due to the murder of my mother and the sabotage of a career I built from the ground up (not to mention family difficulties). Our relationship started right in the middle of it, so I was never on the most solid of foundations, and of course she had difficulties of her own. So when one or the other of us had our own problems going on, we weren’t able to be there to support the other, which caused resentment. In the course of a year, this might crop up 3-4 times. For me personally, I would find that a simple cuddle and conversation would make it all better, and I believed this to be true for both of us, but if for whatever reason that cuddle was unable to happen when it was needed, she would make a firm decision to end the relationship, and that’s what has now happened. When it’d happened before, we were able to work it out by getting that cuddle and chat, but she has now disallowed it.

She has blocked me everywhere, asked me to not talk to her anymore, even suggested I move far away, and had suddenly decided she would rather work on repairing the unhappy marriage she has than spend another second talking to me. I have been finding this incredibly hard and normally she would be the first person to support me if I was struggling emotionally, however this time she is central to why I am messed up and I don’t have that support. As a result, I’ve broken Kevin’s rules and it’s gotten ugly.

I would accept even a friendship at this stage, but it’s not on offer. I can’t imagine that there are no feelings left for me, especially when one of her final messages said:

“Never think I don’t love you, never think I won’t wish to be part of your life …”

But I’ve made myself look like a needy pest, and I wish I had a time machine to undo the panic I was in. Can anyone tell me, please, how I can undo this? I don’t want a possible future down the line (even if it’s years) to have been ruined because I struggled to give her space when she needed it.

Hi Barry, I’m sorry to hear of your mother’s murder and your business. Both tragic, as well as profoundly sad and difficult to cope with.

An affair always seems so passionate, but it can never be a complete and fulfilling relationship because of the reasons you mentioned in that when other situations with family are going on, your obligation is to be with family rather than supporting your lover. That’s probably one of the main reasons affairs burn out. It’s a wise decision that she wants to work on her marriage and maybe you could think about doing the same with your own. There’s a greater heartbreak in divorce when children are involved, but in most cases satisfactory arrangements can be made. So if you and your lover had both been divorced, things would probably have turned out differently. Going from lover to friend is nearly impossible because of the intense feelings involved. I’m convinced your ex loves you, but love alone doesn’t fulfill the desire to be united with someone in every way. Don’t regret being a pest, it was a normal reaction to losing someone you love. Perhaps sometime in the future you would have a better chance together, but for now, try to let her go.

Thank you Patricia. I understand what you’re saying and you believing she loves me just brought me to tears. I would wait forever, just knowing that. That’s all I need to get through each day