Jealousy is a natural human emotion, and I am sure that we have all experienced it at some point in our lives. However, it can turn toxic if we let it consume us so much that it starts to affect how we treat our loved ones.
This guy was also extremely jealous, but his girlfriend was horrified when he blocked her male friends on Facebook behind her back. When she confronted him, the fellow claimed he was “protecting” her, but she soon realized that he was just trying to control her! Here’s what happened next…
More info: Reddit
A little bit of jealousy is normal, but it can turn unhealthy if a person lets it consume their whole life
Image credits: drobotdean / Magnific (not the actual photo)
The poster's boyfriend was extremely jealous, but she was aghast to find out that he had sneakily blocked her male friends on her Facebook
Image credits: The Yuri Arcurs Collection / Magnific (not the actual photo)
When she confronted him, he brushed off his behavior as "normal," and claimed that he was just "protecting" her, but she felt totally controlled
Image credits: garetsvisual / Magnific (not the actual photo)
When she canceled going to his place as she was feeling uneasy about his behavior, he accused her of "cheating," so she broke up with him in a fit of rage
Image credits: kipperz5
She met him later, but soon realized that he had no intentions of apologizing or backing off from his controlling behavior, so she ended things for good
In today’s story, the 22-year-old original poster (OP) narrates what triggered her to break up with her 28-year-old boyfriend. They had been together for 7 months when one of her guy friends asked her why she had blocked him on Facebook. When she checked her account in confusion, the author saw that many of her male friends had been blocked, and she knew it was her boyfriend.
When they first started dating, he asked her to block a guy she used to chat with. It made him uncomfortable, as the two shared a history, so she obliged, but this was quite outrageous. Moreover, when she confronted him, he claimed it was “normal,” and he was “protecting” her. However, she couldn’t shake off the feeling that he was being controlling.
In fact, she slowly realized that there had been many such instances before, so she canceled going to his place that night. The author revealed that she felt uneasy about what he did, but the guy was absolutely triggered by it. He accused her of “cheating,” which obviously angered her, so she broke things. However, after both calmed down, they met the next morning.
She expected an apology, but her boyfriend refused to back down from his ridiculous claims about her friends that “guys can’t help themselves.” Although their relationship was beyond repair, she met him again in hopes of seeing any change. However, she had to digest the truth that he was just a jealous guy trying to control her life, and letting him go was for the best.
Image credits: gorynvd / Magnific (not the actual photo)
Believe it or not, experts warn that “irrational or excessive jealousy is often a warning sign of a potentially violent relationship. Eventually, jealous people become so overwhelmed by their emotions and insecurities that they try to control their partners. They may resort to financial cruelty, verbal bullying, and violence to maintain control and alleviate or mask their feelings.”
Being on the receiving end of all that jealousy and control must be deeply tormenting for the poster. No wonder researchers have pointed out the significant correlation between coercive control and negative mental health outcomes. A systematic review and meta-analysis found that exposure to coercive control is moderately associated with both PTSD and depression.
Moreover, the guy gaslit her into thinking he was “protective” and even manipulated her by acting the way she wanted after she broke up with him. Studies stress that these are classic signs of an emotionally violent relationship, and netizens couldn’t agree more. They also claimed that the guy was completely delusional in thinking that his toxic behavior was actually “normal.”
Some peeps even felt that the big age gap between the two was problematic. They claimed that a few older men purposely target younger women, so it’s easier to control them. The boyfriend in the story definitely sounds like one of them. Do you agree with what they said? We would love to hear your thoughts, so feel free to jot them down in the comments section!
Netizens were disgusted by the guy's behavior, and many claimed that he was purposely dating someone younger to control her
