When you’re in a stable relationship, you may experience a few rocky periods along the way. Since people grow at different paces, it can often be hard to reach common ground even if you’ve have been strong up until that point. Unfortunately, it’s possible to fall out of love. It’s a reality that a lot of people don’t want to come to terms with, so it’s often hard to figure out. Here are a few signs that your guy just isn’t committed to the relationship anymore.
- He feels suffocated. Everyone needs some alone time. At the start of the relationship, it’s possible that the two of you did everything together — but now that things are starting to settle, he just needs some space. If you’ve been arguing with him about it or making him feel bad for watching a movie alone, he could quickly fall out of love. He may be your boyfriend, but he’s also a person with his own life to manage.
- He realizes that the two of you share a big incompatibility. There are certain personality types that just don’t match. If he needs to keep a clean house yet you’re a little scattered and don’t mind clutter, expect things to fall apart. Every time he goes into the kitchen and sees you left out your lunch supplies, he’ll take it personally and start forming a grudge. You might not mean to disrespect your partner, but actions speak louder than words.
- Physical attraction has ended. A relationship isn’t just about attraction and sex, but it’s still a big part of it. If your looks have changed or if you’re in a depressed slump, he might not feel as compelled to take you to bed. Just keep in mind that these changes happen to all of us. The right match for you won’t mind if you gained a few pounds around the holidays, but you can’t fault your boyfriend for not really feeling it anymore. (And if it is a depressive spell you’re going through, don’t be afraid to book an appointment with your doctor to help you get back on track.)
- You’ve gotten too negative. Life can be really tough sometimes, but in general, we all try our best to enjoy it. If you’ve got nothing nice to say — and never have anything nice to say — he might be afraid to talk to you. If he got a job promotion and you turned it into a speech about how he’s going to hate his new job, why even share the news to begin with? Try to lighten up a little bit. Not everything in this world is terrible.
- You’re too insecure. He fell for you for a reason. If he didn’t like you, he never would have asked you to be his girlfriend. But if you keep fishing for compliments, or asking him about every other woman he comes into contact with, dating you might be more of a chore. Guys love confidence. If yours has fallen, you may want to work on that before he falls out of love with you.
- He just doesn’t want to try anymore. Couples fight — it’s actually abnormal if they don’t. However, the fight should end with the two of you talking about how to work through the issue. If he just wants to stay mad or you just don’t even care about how things resolve, it’s possible that you’ve both fallen out of love. When you love someone, you don’t want to hurt them.
- He has issues with the concept of love from his own family. If his parents recently divorced, he may change his mind on your relationship. News like that can be devastating, especially if it’s a couple who appeared strong. If this is the case, it’s not something you should take personally. He’ll need to find some resources to help him get over the major life event. If it was meant to happen with him? Maybe things might repair themselves in the future after he has some space to think.
- He lost his ability to trust you. Have you lied to him about something big? That’s a huge betrayal. Suddenly, he may second-guess everything you’ve ever told him. Lying in a relationship is a bad sign. How can you love someone you always need to second-guess?
- He met someone else and realized they weren’t happy. Sometimes people are together since they think they’re in love. Instead, they’ve actually just grown codependent. Cheating is never the answer. Relationships should dissolve the appropriate way before that happens, but sometimes all it takes is someone new for a guy to realize that he’s been unhappy this entire time. It’ll hurt, but having him move forward will be good for the both of you. You don’t deserve to be with someone who isn’t giving you his all.
- He felt pressured to commit in the first place. Some people are just uncomfortable in a relationship, but feel as if it’s the only step they can take. Maybe his parents were pressuring him to settle down, or perhaps all of his friends were getting married and having kids. Sure, he could still respect you and like you. But if he feels like he was never meant to settle down, he might realize he never really loved you.
