Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

People Share Signs That A Relationship Has Run Its Course

Not a single thriving relationship has ever suddenly gone through a break up.

When things are ended, the deed comes after a slow creep, the confusing period of self-rationalizations, growing contempt, and willful denial.


After the creep swells for long enough, though, we begin to listen. Feeling unfairly irritable is not an example that you're a jerk, but that you need to listen. Avoidance does not automatically denote pure selfishness, rather forgivable distance or dissatisfaction.

The manifestation of the widening gap takes many forms, all of which Redditors have come across. One question beckoned a list of the great variety of signs that may arise.

FagnusTwatfield asked, "What are some signs that a relationship has run its course?"

The Heart-Sink Alarm

"If you find that you can only relax and be yourself when they aren't around, crushing you with the weight of their silent judgement and disapproval, it's way past the expiration date." -- downhereforyoursoul

"When you turn the corner driving home, and feel disappointment when you see her car in the driveway - because you know the minute you step in the door she's going to start crapping on you again." -- lucky_ducker

Opposite Sides of the Same Coin

"You've bottled your real feelings up so much that now everything they do or say fills you with contempt." -- breakfastinthemornin

From personal experience, the biggest indicator is when tensions should be high, you should be upset or arguing, but you just don't care anymore." -- ThunderPantsDance

Things that Thrive are not so Bitter

"When you start fighting about a lot of meaningless things. In many cases, I'd say it's a manifestation of the hesitation to deal with the quite harsh truth that you no longer feel that you want to be with the person."

-- coraldomino

Cold, Telling Indifference

"The sight of them does nothing for you. Getting a text or phone call from them elicits an eye-roll. You try to avoid them. You cannot hold a conversation with them because everything they say is irritating. You really could not care less about their day or anything they have to say to you. You find yourself fantasizing of a life without them... and it makes you smile."

-- PurpleVein99

Visceral Cues are Sometimes More Attuned

"While I couldn't pinpoint any one thing that was wrong, I started to get the sense he was annoyed with me, I said something wrong, he didn't want me around, etc. Trust your gut. Even if he's not experiencing anything wrong, you're clearly sensing something, so talk it out. Maybe he is cheating on you. Maybe you have unfounded trust issues."

-- irrationalweather

Multilayered Distance

"When you notice that your partner doesn't miss you (or vice versa) after being separated for a while. If you've been apart for a couple weeks or longer and your partner still feels no particular urgency to see you or talk to you, then the relationship is dead."

-- RurouniKarly

Forced or Compelled?

"When spending time is something you have to give effort to actively think about and plan out as opposed to something you look forward to and excitedly long for. I know that's what it was for me: she became a block in my schedule instead of the reason my schedule existed."

-- maleorderbride

When "Alone Time" is the Rule

"When you're not enjoying your time around them any more. There's a difference between wanting a night away or a strong life outside of your relationship and full-on disliking their company." -- Responsible-Coyote

Read Your Words

"When you ask Reddit what signs show a relationship has run its course." -- Toxxxixx

"When you go to AskReddit to see if sexting is considered cheating." -- onidels

Where Do You Go When the Chips are Down?

"You have something big happen and they are not the first person you call."

"I had a car accident at like 5am and didn't even bother calling my now ex, he was useless and I called the people that mattered."

-- Silly__Rabbit

More from Trending/best-of-reddit

Screenshot of Donald Trump
@atrupar/X

Trump Dragged After Making Ridiculous Claim About Randomly Finding Billions On The 'Tariff Shelf'

President Donald Trump was criticized after he claimed to reporters this week that officials in his administration suddenly found $30 billion they "never knew existed"—located on what Trump referred to as the "tariff shelf."

Tariffs are a tax on imported goods, usually calculated as a percentage of the purchase price. While tariffs can shield domestic manufacturers by making foreign products more expensive, they are also used as a tool to penalize countries engaged in unfair trade practices, such as government subsidies or dumping goods below market value.

Keep ReadingShow less
food prep
Katie Smith on Unsplash

Professional Chefs Share The Top Mistakes Average Home Cooks Make

With the expansion of cable television and then streaming services, a number of competition shows featuring amateur home cooks. Shows like Master Chef and The Great British Bake Off garnered huge followings and spawned numerous global and domestic spin-offs.

The food produced by these amateurs is beyond the talents of even some professional chefs. But what about the average home cook? What can they learn from the professionals?

Keep ReadingShow less
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images

RFK Jr.'s HHS Blasted As CDC Panel Considers Dropping Life-Saving Hepatitis B Vaccine For Newborns

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's vaccine advisory panel, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), met Thursday for the first of two days of discussions about childhood vaccine schedules and recommendations.

The panel focused on the hepatitis B vaccine and plans to vote on Friday whether to continue recommending it be given to all children at birth or to recommend something entirely different. The panel previously tabled making a decision on infant and early childhood hep-B vaccination in September.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots from @monicasanluiss's TikTok video
@monicasanluiss/TikTok

Bride's Friends Surprise Her With Montage Video Of All Her Exes At Bachelorette Party—And People Are Mortified

While Jenny Han's novel To All the Boys I've Loved Before was a major hit, and even became a great film success in 2018, not everyone's married to the idea of reconnecting with their exes after the relationships end.

It might be nice to imagine staying friends after the relationships, imagining our exes missing us or regretting losing us, or even giving us an apology for the things they did wrong. But most of us pine for this for a little while, realize it's all a fairy tale, and push past it to better things and new love.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots from @alexamcnee's TikTok video
@alexamcnee/TikTok

TikToker Sparks Debate After Calling Out Driver's Extremely Bright Headlights For Blinding Her

Whether we are drivers or passengers, we've all experienced that annoying, possibly painful moment of feeling like we're being blinded by a fellow driver whose headlights are far too bright for a standard car on a standard road.

But while most of us complain about it to ourselves and leave it at that, TikToker Alexa McNee stepped up for all of us and called it out.

Keep ReadingShow less