Get Premium
Dark mode theme is available exclusively for premium users. Learn more about the benefits of subscribing.
No fees, cancel anytime.
Dark Mode 
No fees, cancel anytime 
Most relationships have this moment when the rose-colored glasses are off, and you see your partner in their truest colors. Sometimes it’s a slow drip of little things that end in a realization that your partner is not as perfect as they seemed at first. Other times, it’s one single event that wakes you up from the beautiful romantic daze. The following list is comprised of those latter moments that instantly ended the honeymoon phase.
The Ask Women community on Reddit invited their members to share the moments they realized why their significant other (SO) was broken up with. And, wow, some of them have seen things one cannot unsee. Scroll down to see the list of alarming and not-so-obvious red flags that justify walking out on somebody.
This post may include affiliate links.
#1
Not my current SO but when he got mad at me for asking him to take the trash out. (He had been unemployed for 3 months and gamed all day, didn't clean or cook or help with anything.) So he proceeded to slam his headset into the floor, throw the chair across the room and was screaming at me that he wanted to finish his match. I just kept cooking dinner and ignored him which pissed him off more so he said he hoped me and my unborn child would die. I cut it off right then and there. Been a little over a year now and haven't looked back. Wish I would have listened to his exes instead of being manipulated into thinking they were just bitter.
RELATED:
#2
He told me he liked to do things out of spite, example: his ex had a problem with the amount of porn he was consuming, and it was making her insecure after having gained a lot of weight after their 2nd child and BRAIN SURGERY. He said the *second* she left the house he'd start watching porn "just to spite her". But he would have convos with her, according to him, where he told her he understood and wouldn't do it anymore and then just do it til she caught him again and fought over it. I realized I had told him my insecurity really early on. Guess who was being lied to and cheated on out of spite? I guess?
Tobias Reaper 1 year ago
this dude sounds like a literal sociopath no empathy doing things just to hurt people and specific things that they have told him really hurt them
#3
After living with my ex-boyfriend…. god, even his ex-gf tried to warn me countless of times… I just thought she didn’t want to let him go… he was a literal giant man baby… never took responsibility for anything, never made something for himself… leeched off of my success… gaslighted me… I’m actually really glad I caught him cheating… it gave me the push to finally leave.
Now I’m doing a hell of a lot better than ever before
Tempest 1 year ago
My ex has narcissistic personality disorder. More than wallowing in all the pain he’s put me through, the only thing I actually want to see is him not hurting another woman the way he did me. But I just don’t know how to warn future gfs of his to just run if he ever tries for a relationship. I just wish there was a way to put a black label on such dangerous people so people will know to avoid them.
#4
Not my current(three years and he’s still the best and getting better), but my ex, HOOBOY.
He was great at first! So kind and supportive!
The first thing that made me think “yeah, I get why he got dumped” was when I suggested two sci-fi shows in a row(he was obsessed with Stargate so I thought he’d be into it), he said “do you consume any serious media or only childish things?”
Then he wanted me to do ALL of his housework. He started to belittle every interest and hobby I had saying it was boring or stupid or immature. Treated me like an idiot, except, of course, when he wanted me to proofread and help edit his writing. He had a bachelors in English and masters in writing and rhetoric, and I never went to college and got huffy if I criticized any of his writing because OBVIOUSLY he knew better. He’d have me make spreadsheets with info on literary agents.
Idk why I stayed so long. The final straw was when he said I’m not good enough for him. So I was like “ok bye” and he got surprise pikachu face and said “I thought you’d change for me!”
He made really good stew though. I miss the stew but not the man.
#5
He was super cheap , spent all his time and money on his car. Used excuses like he didn’t believe in holidays … so that he didn’t have to buy any gifts ever / also had an attitude- made it seem like a chore when he got me 1 flower. But would quickly and happily go pay xxx amount of a money on something for his vehicle. Also consistently cancelled dates last minute to clean, and shine his car.
I told him to go date his car.
#6
Disclaimer: I’m not with this guy. I was dating a guy that was super weird about food. Always asking me to pick him up food, never asking me if I wanted anything/offering me food. Always complaining about his finances but spending $40+ per meal and eating out for every meal. He kept mentioning his ex girlfriend whenever food came up but never went much into detail. Found out that their relationship ended when he made an elaborate dish for her- without checking if she was available to come over- and when upon texting her and telling (TELLING, not asking) her to come over and learning that she wasn’t available that evening, HE BURNT DOWN HIS HOUSE.
No food is worth that, I noped out of there real quick after.
Daniela Lavanza 1 year ago
If this i true, this guy is clearly insane. Food is just an excuse for pure insanity.
#7
My ex told me he divorced his wife because he confessed his affair with the babysitter. Then he said to me, 'It's not my fault she hired a hot babysitter.'
#8
After 1 year together, my bf started showing his other side. He’s super clingy and has separation anxiety, which leads to being over-controlling most of the time. He transforms into a new individual when he consumes alcohol. He becomes very aggressive and violent.
#9
When I was crying begging him to buy me flowers or even kiss me on valentines day and he just went inside the house and played video games til 3am.
Tobias Reaper 1 year ago
that is terrible you shouldn't have to beg your partner for things like this especially to kiss you
#10
Not my current but one of my exes. He had the friendzone curse with many of the women in his life. He never had a relationship last longer than a few months, and he was 27.
At first, I didn't get the friendzone or his lack of long relationships- he was decently attractive, a lot of fun, and a good friend. As time went on, he started to make comments about how much happier I'll be once I lose another xyz amount of weight. He was never sexually satisfied, no matter the frequency.
I met his parents, and his mom decided that I wasn't good enough for her son. After seeing the insane amount of privilege he came from, and this reinforcement that nothing would ever be good enough for him, I understood why girls never stuck around. When he broke up with me, he got right back on dating apps. He had the balls to complain to me about dating a southern belle, who didn't work, and how he had to pay for everything.
Am I supposed to feel bad for you, guy? Last I heard, he's still single.
Gardener of Weeden 1 year ago
Ok, Just because a man has not had long term relationships, is not always a bad thing. My Husband never dated a girl/woman longer than 3 months. We have been married for 40+ yrs (happily 90% of the time).He said he knew after 3 months if she was the right one for hm.
#11
He divorced his wife of a year claiming she didn’t do 'wifely duties' and got lazy in their relationship. It took me six months to see he didn’t do any 'spousal duties' either nor provided me with any emotional connection. AND he was lazy the entire relationship. So I realized it wasn't his ex-wife. I kinda noticed a pattern of him manipulating the narrative of the women in his life
#12
He claimed his wife just wanted a divorce for no reason and wouldn't discuss it with him.
It eventually became clear to me that he was combative, argumentative, and a perpetual blameshifter. Everything was always somehow my fault and no hill was too small to die on. The man could not be reasoned with or persuaded on anything and he always knew best, even when it came to things that I had degrees in.
And then I understood why his wife had effectively ghosted him and just filed for divorce.
He is now my ex, too.
#13
Our first date was a picnic in the park. I brought a particularly fancy wedge of smoked Gouda I probably overpaid for. When I pulled it out of the picnic basket he took it and chomped right into the wedge and ate almost half of it in one bite. My jaw dropped.
Also he though women pee out of their vagina. Luckily he was willing and eager to learn things and now he knows a lot more about the female anatomy and not eating half a wedge of Gouda in one bite. We’re still together and it’s been almost four years now.
#14
When I realised he was one of those guys who once they have the title of 'boyfriend' they think it means they can stop putting any effort into the relationship. Like you're a trophy to be won. I had to hint at basic things (like buying me a birthday card and present) and half the time he couldn't even be bothered to do that. He was late pretty much all the time and never properly apologised for it.
It got to a point where I'd ask myself why am I even spending time with this guy? He makes me miserable. Sad as at first in our relationship it was magical - I'd count down the days to seeing him, we couldn't get enough of each other. But he lost his way and it became a chore to have to go visit him - which I had to do as we were a 'official couple'. He'd make me feel worse after visiting him than I originally did before seeing him. I had a lightbulb moment where I questioned 'why keep doing this to myself?' I wouldn't hang out with a selfish friend who made me feel like c**p. Part of me blames societal pressure - this constant need to be paired up with someone otherwise no one will value you or find you attractive.
Then after his s****y attitude he had the cheek to get all 'I'm a victim, poor me' when I broke up with him. I told him 'you are responsible for this don't try to turn it around on me'.
#15
Not my current, but my ex. He had domestic violence charges against him from his ex, but upon us getting to know each other, he showed me all the "proof" that she was lying. The case was thrown out by the judge and he was never formally prosecuted for it. I was 19, he was 24. I was naïve and believed him. About two years into our relationship, he was driving and I was in the passenger seat. He was yelling at me over some weird delusion he had that I was cheating on him. (I wasn't). He screamed, punched the wheel, and threated to drive off the bridge we were on.
Ooooooh. I get it.
ToGo 1 year ago
It's too easy to say what you would've done when you weren't in that person's situation. Please bare in mind that these psycho's have their partners manipulated and terrified. My ex did too many things to name but this post took me back to something I'd completely put out of my mind. He started arguing with me, and I mean he literally just started arguing out of nowhere. We were in his truck. I said something like "why are you angry right now?" and he reached over to try unclick my seat belt (while he was driving) but I was fighting him off and he slammed the breaks, on the middle of the expressway. Thank goodness I managed to keep my belt on or it would have been a hell of a lot worse than a sore neck/torso (no other drivers were harmed). I remember howling hysterically, I was so scared but I can't remember the rest of that night. I was so strong, trusting, confident before I met him but he completely destroyed me. Some people are just evil and horrifyingly good at it.
#16
My current fiancé' is a professional chef. He used to do restaurant work, which included changing jobs frequently, lots of late nights, and partying after work. He had no health insurance or retirement, and worked a lot of weekends. One of the reasons his ex broke up with him was because she didn't feel like he was a stable enough partner to have children with, and she wanted kids. She ended up leaving him for a coworker of hers. Three months after we started dating, he got a new job working as a corporate chef. He now basically works banker's hours with holidays and weekends off, he carries our health insurance, and makes almost twice as much money as I do. He wants to open his own restaurant one day, but only if he's in the financial position to do so. Honestly, if he hadn't switched jobs so early in our relationship, I 100% would have come to the same conclusion as she did.
He also has ADHD, which drove his ex crazy, but only mildly annoys me (fellow ADHDer over here).
#17
He had a child with his ex so we dealt with her on a daily basis. She was extremely hostile and dramatic, and he kept telling me stories from when they were together that made her sound completely nuts, abusive even.
A couple of months into our relationship, he cheated on me, on our bed, while I was at work. He expressed no empathy at all when I found out. He refused to look me in the eye, acted visibly pissed that he got caught, refused to give me the answers that I needed and claimed that it was no big deal. That’s when I understood.
#18
His mom was always in our business and he was basically still on her tit. I see why his ex “estranged him from his family”.
#19
After we moved in together and he started rejecting me physically, even hugs.
And I found myself doing everything.
Then I was looking at his oldest screenshots that synched to a new iPad and saw a ton of screenshot arguments from years ago with his ex before me
Me and her sound identical. I can see why she did what she did. She was a victim to his immaturity and arrogance too. I feel bad, and I also feel seen. And I guess sad to know he can’t really change.
#20
He had two kids. After a couple of dates, I hung out with him and his kids. He asked me to change one of the kid's diapers since he was bad at it. And because I’m a nanny, and a girl, I must like it. He made me do 90% of the childcare that night.
#21
I was driving around with an ex and got very hungry. So we stopped for a pie and I ate it in the car. He looks over at me and laughs and says I must really like you because you’re the first person to eat in my car. He proceeds to tell me one time his ex bought a sandwich and opened it in the car, he asked her to wait until she gets home to eat it, she refused, so he stopped the car, asked her to get out and drove off. Needless to say it didn’t last very long after that story.
#22
Not my current SO but my ex. When the gaslighting became evident and I discovered him cheating on me with his “just a friend” friend that apparently his ex had doubts about. I can confirm the ex wasn’t crazy, he was a liar. And that friend was never just a friend.
Tobias Reaper 1 year ago
i dont get this if he is having a thing with this "friend" why not just be with them instead of wasting others time and hurting them
#23
Not my current, but my ex. He told me that his ex-wife was a prude who viewed his porn use as cheating and they weren't sexually compatible. Years after marrying him I discovered that his frequent porn use was why we weren't able to have a mutually satisfying sex life. I confronted him about it, told him how I felt undesirable and unwanted, and asked him to either slow it down or stop and consider therapy. He apologized and told me that he just couldn't give it up. I found out that the specific porn he was obsessed with involved underage or very young-looking cartoon characters, and yeah...we're divorced now. He was otherwise a great guy, but I couldn't be in a relationship with someone who found me sexually undesirable because I wasn't an anime character.
DarkViolet 1 year ago
Pornography sets up standards which normal, average women can never match, much less exceed; it places an unfair burden on their partners. Like any addiction, it burns up time and money, and burns down relationships. Some guys, not even satisfied with the fantasy, are willing to pursue it in real life. Then they end up wondering why their relationships fail and they can't get a second date. Smh.......
#24
When I saw how moody and manipulative he got when things didn’t go his way, like using the silent treatment. Sayonara!
#25
he acted like a child. one day at school i brought him some clothes that he left at my house. he refused to take them because he said his “book bag was too full”. it had a large amount of space, he also had an extra bag for his basketball clothes that he could have easily used. i told him i wasn’t holding his clothes, and proceeded to set them on the ground. he refused to pick them up and walked away thinking i would. i didn’t. at the end of the day when we usually kiss each other bye, he said “no kiss for you because you didn’t carry my clothes today”. for the last week we dated he told me he never got his shirt back and someone stole it, but a week after we broke up i saw him wearing it in a snapchat picture.
Stephanie A Mutti 1 year ago
My 10y/o knows not to expect me to carry her stuff and she's my daughter.
#26
When I found out he was a serial cheater. Idk why my dumbass was still surprised when he cheated on me eventually 🤡
Disgruntled Pelican 1 year ago
As Rachel's mom said on Friends "Once a cheater, always a cheater!"
#27
Getting obsessive over bills and texting my friends to see if we actually went out together
#28
Well, this is about my now ex, but when he confessed to me that he lied about his body count because he thought I wouldn’t sleep with him because mine is much higher, and he thought I’d think he was inexperienced. His ex (the girl before me that left him) complained he was immature and lost the sex appeal quickly. She was right, he was immature and lost sex appeal quickly, especially when he confessed to lying to me to get me to sleep with him. And btw, the sex was so bad I could hardly believe he supposedly got that many women to sleep with him.
#29
When we first started dating (6 months in?) I went to a house party with a friend and he harassed me from about 11pm-1am, wanting to know when I’d go home and why I was out so late. On the way home, I blew up on him for being controlling and he was so apologetic and repentant that I knew, immediately, that this had happened before and it had ended that relationship. He actually confirmed it recently. We’ve been together 5 years as of this coming Tuesday, and we’re getting married in September. Never had an issue with it since.
Blue Bunny of Happiness 1 year ago
I’m dubious that this will turn out to be a happy marriage. I sincerely hope I’m wrong.
#30
After we broke up because his fear of commitment I remembered:
How his ex wanted him to move in with her.
How his ex was always yelling at him.
How his ex was always trying to spend time with him.
He was just afraid of commitment.
What do you think ?
General Anaesthesia 1 year ago
Especially since the term in that context implies that the act itself means little to nothing to the actor(s).
Load More Replies...
Tracy Wallick 1 year ago
I divorced my ex after about 3 years because, after we got married, he turned into a completely different person. When we were dating he remembered our anniversary, my birthday, he was attentive and treated me like a girlfriend, the kind of guy I wanted to be with for life. But once we got married, he stopped putting ANY effort into the relationship; while he was unemployed at home and by his own admission "in no real rush to find a job", I was drowning doing all the housework, cooking and paying all of the bills. He started sleeping on the couch of his own accord. He stopped remembering important dates and could never be bothered to write them down, despite knowing they were important to me. We had so many discussions where I tried to talk to him, and he'd just stare silently at me. I knew it was over when I asked if he'd cuddle with me one night since I was having trouble sleeping; he said "he didn't really feel like it". I realized then and there that he was only thinking about 1/2
Tracy Wallick 1 year ago
2/2 himself, and could only seem to remember I existed when he wanted something from me (money, sex, to borrow my car, etc.).
Load More Replies... General Anaesthesia 1 year ago
Especially since the term in that context implies that the act itself means little to nothing to the actor(s).
Load More Replies... Tracy Wallick 1 year ago
I divorced my ex after about 3 years because, after we got married, he turned into a completely different person. When we were dating he remembered our anniversary, my birthday, he was attentive and treated me like a girlfriend, the kind of guy I wanted to be with for life. But once we got married, he stopped putting ANY effort into the relationship; while he was unemployed at home and by his own admission "in no real rush to find a job", I was drowning doing all the housework, cooking and paying all of the bills. He started sleeping on the couch of his own accord. He stopped remembering important dates and could never be bothered to write them down, despite knowing they were important to me. We had so many discussions where I tried to talk to him, and he'd just stare silently at me. I knew it was over when I asked if he'd cuddle with me one night since I was having trouble sleeping; he said "he didn't really feel like it". I realized then and there that he was only thinking about 1/2
Tracy Wallick 1 year ago
2/2 himself, and could only seem to remember I existed when he wanted something from me (money, sex, to borrow my car, etc.).
Load More Replies... You May Like “Super Cute, Right?” She Dressed Up For A Date, Then His First Comment Shattered Everything 30 Funny "Break Up Lines" That People Came Up With 50 Times Partners Took 'Clueless' To The Next Level
Lei RV
Denis Tymulis
Eglė Bliabaitė
Related on Bored Panda
