Home→Forums→Relationships→A letter to my ex that seems to say it all and yet I am still hurting
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June 5, 2014 at 10:24 am #58162hmvgParticipant
Dear ,
I am sending this to you as a way of trying to work through the issues that I am having right now. It is for me a way to start the healing process and to move on. Its also sort of a way for me to document what I am going through right now for you and for me. Writing these things out helps me to better identify what is really going on. I don’t expect an answer and to be honest I’m really afraid one too.
I know I put a lot of pressure on you to fix me and that is not ok. I’m sorry. I am having a very difficult time right now to the point of I have had a complete and total melt down- I guess in professional talk it would be a nervous breakdown.
I am definitely beating myself up over this with every little detail from both our sides, however since I am in the position I am in now I am beating my side up more.
I realize that I put a l lot of burden on you, I realize that I was looking to you to make me happy, to take care of me, to fix everything and to allow me to continue living life in a not so good way as you were there to catch me. This is not ok. You are not responsible for my happiness or emotional well being. A relationship has 2 sides and I know that I was only looking at my side. I felt like you needed my help too and I was unable to give it to you and was just adding to your already full plate.
I have always admired your sense of realism and it has helped to balance me out sometimes. I may not have liked to hear what you had to say but it was real and came from a place of maturity and knowledge. Something I am still working on as I go through life. I don’t have the experience and or years under my belt to be able to come up with the answers quite as easily as you can yet.
I also don’t have the strength to become a robot or to compartmentalize my emotions the way that you do. I let my emotions get the best of me and cloud my judgment of everything else. I let it consume me to the point that i can’t see past it. It is not good and I am desperately trying to change that.
What hurts the most right now is the way it was left. I had already had the rug pulled out from under me and was in a very dark place and then you left too. No word no warning no nothing- just nothing. I am agonizing over why although I do understand that the 2 of us have had a very bumpy relationship and you very well could be fed up with my drama. I do understand that. I do feel though that this was some type of mental pay back. It went down exactly like it did when I broke up with you although mine was not done with malicious intent. I was truly in a bad place with myself as I still am which would explain my current melt down status. I have never addressed my real issues but chose instead to ignore them and keep going on pushing it all deep down and trying to forget about it.
I have a hard time letting go of the past. In many way I blame you for a lot of things which is not fair. There are things that you have done that have hurt me immensely too throughout our 3 year off and on relationship but I also know I am not owning up to my part either. Its easier to blame someone else than to have to look inside your self to see what it is you are doing wrong. Its even harder to admit it.
The off and on of us has definitely taken its toll. It has always made me completely mental, I can’t figure out if this is because we have a true deep down love or because I rely on you too much to make everything better. I’d like to think its both but can’t figure out why 2 people who love each other so much are also capable of hurting each other so much too.
I’m in a lot of pain right now. its hard for me to breath let alone see a light at the end of the tunnel. I know I need to change I know I need to grow up. I also know that I need to heal. Life has thrown some lemon’s my way and I can’t seem to bring myself to make lemonade out of them just yet. I also am taking all the blame on myself too and constantly beating myself up.
I am having to come to terms with a lot of issues I am having and coping with who I am or though I was and who I though I was supposed to be or what I’m supposed to be. Its not an easy journey to have to look inside your self and really embrace your mistakes and shortcomings and own up to them. Its hard as shit and very draining physically and emotionally. I have been doing a lot of research on this to try and help me through and I know that I have to let this go. You may never speak to me again or give me answers or be there for me and I have to accept that. I can’t control you or your behavior no matter how much I want to. I put unrealistic expectations on you and us and again that is not ok.
I can’t even imagine what it must be like for you to have to try to deal with me in this state. That is why I am trying to change. Not change who I am to conform to others but to be able to be a better person for myself and those around me. I just feel like shouting over and over again i’m sorry. I’m sorry, i’m sorry, i’m sorry. I want to shout it at the top of my lungs- i’m sorry to you, i’m sorry to me. i’m sorry to Aden, I’m sorry. I can’t seem to say it enough but can’t find the mental power to accept it or to let things go. Its a heavy weight on my chest that has rendered me completely helpless and afraid.
I know that i have had melt downs before and you have allowed me to and always came back. I guess i felt that i could keep getting away with this behavior and that it was ok and you would always be there to pick up the pieces. Again that is completely unfair to you and i should never have put you in that position.
From all that I have read I know this is a life changing journey that I am on. It takes a big fall to hit rock bottom and an even bigger step to get back up. I have never had this happen before. I feel completely incapacitated. Like the world is crowding in around me and I can’t breath. Its very scary. Every thing tells me that there is light at the end of the tunnel. that this emotional trip will have a happy ending and I will be stronger for it. Right now though as I am in the thick of it I am having a hard time seeing that light.
I wonder about you. Are you ok- are you handling this well- do you care- are you sad- have you completely shut down and feel nothing. I tried that- I tried pushing my true emotions so far down that they ended up erupting like a volcano and burning everything in its wake.
Now that I can take a small step back and look at things I can see that this has been coming for a while. I know that I had been telling you I was not happy which was part of why I had to let you go months ago- I just had no idea how unhappy I was. Again I was blaming you for a lot of things which meant that I was not opening up to the fact that a lot of it was me.
I’m just so angry. Angry at myself and the world and everything in it. I put unrealistic standards on everything and then get mad when it does not go the way that I want it to. that is my issue that I am also trying to work on right now. Why am I so angry- I know it has to do with me and not anything or anyone else. I am angry because I feel like I have screwed up all over the place. I’m angry because I feel like I have failed, i’m angry because life is not turning out the way that I had imagined it. I’m angry because I can’t let go of the anger. I was so angry in fact that the other night when it all came crashing in around me I drank margaritas to ease the pain with out having eaten any thing and ended up breaking nearly half the dishes in my kitchen out of anger. I had such a melt down i can’t even remember what happened. I had to let it out. You too were on the receiving end of that. I was angry at you for not making it all better right then and there for not taking the pain away for not picking me up off the floor cradling me and telling me its all going to be ok.
That is not your job to do. I have to do that within me. Again I’m sorry for putting that on you. I know you didn’t realize it or know that I was placing all my hopes and dreams on you and that is not fair to either of us.
I have to get this out and I’m sorry to again burden you with this. To me its my form of trying to gain forgiveness not only from you but to me as well. I can’t move forward until I understand why its all happening and what my part in it all is. I have to be able to get through this myself no matter how painful it is.
Right now I am just mentally stuck. I have all these feelings and emotions inside me that I know I have to come to terms with and It’s the scariest thing I have ever been through. It’s literally eating me up inside. Its burning up all my energy and making me feel completely incapacitated.
I do have moments of clarity- I put on a brave face for Aden and get through the night with her as best I can. I hide my emotions from her so that she does not know how badly I am suffering right now. That is too much for any child to have to put up with.
I do what I need to do to get through the day. I put small tasks on my plate to get through them- wash the dishes- may seem like a small task but when you have no energy and feel at a complete loss its a big deal. I just want to curl up on the couch and sleep but that eludes me too. I can’t sleep. I also know that I can’t give up. I have to survive not only for me but for Aden. I have no choice. Life moves on around me. People get up and go to work and have no idea what is happening behind my closed door, nor should they. I can’t expect that everyone drop what they are doing to take care of me when really I need to take care of myself. Something I am finding very difficult to do right now.
I do not expect you to comment on this or to come to my rescue or to tell me its all going to be ok. I expect your not going to say anything at all. That, while very hurtful, is also something that perhaps is what is needed. To have you in my life gives me a false sense of security because I rely on you too much to make it all disappear without addressing it. I am purging my soul here because I have to. I have to move on I have to forgive I have to be better. I am doing that by getting this all out. I don’t even have this email addressed to you. I have it addressed to me as that is the person I need to forgive the most. It is a wise idea for me to write this all out and then sit on it for a day and really think about what good it may or may not do to send it.
I want you to understand what I am going through. I want you to know how I am feeling and what I have done to you. I need you to know and understand. As I said though it is not within you to fix this.
I’m scared to send this too. I’m scared that you won’t reply, i’m scared that you will. i’m scared that I ruined a friendship i’m scared that I hurt you- too many times. I’m scared that I hurt me- too many times. I’m scared all over the place. I’m scared that I am again putting unrealistic expectations on life and scared that when it does not go my way again I will have another melt down. Being this scared is not a good feeling. Its horrible. Its debilitating. its immense pressure.
Now that I have purged this out of my system I hope that you are doing ok. I hope that life is treating you well and you are happy. That is what I want most of all is for you to be happy. If that means you need to have me out of your life then I have to come to terms with that and realize that its ok. I know I have done damage. I know a lot of things but not enough right now to pull myself up.
You are the only person I have told all this too. You really are the only person I want to tell all this to right now. I can’t seem to bring myself to reach out to anyone for help even though I know I need it right now. I don’t want to be angry anymore. I don’t want to suffer anymore than is usual for any person to suffer. Of course I know that life is full of disappointments and suffering I just need to figure out how to better handle that. To separate my emotions from the realities. To keep a level head when I feel like I’m going to explode.
The funny thing is I thought I was doing that. I thought I was on a good path I though I was doing ok. I thought i had a handle on things and my emotions. I thought wrong. its not ok for me to overreact with my feelings its very selfish. I have to gain the ability to control what I can control and let go of what I can not.
The life that I was leading was not the one apparently that I am meant to lead. Its very scary to come to that conclusion. To really realize that i was drowning in my own fear of what i thought was expected of me. I put those pressures on myself and i’m not even sure where they came from. grow up, get a good job, get married, have children then life will all be ok. That’s the American dream isn’t it. i didn’t necessarily do things in that order and at one time i was ok with it but lurking deep inside me was the idea that, that is what i needed to be happy. I needed someone else to take the reigns to live my life to make me happy to make the decisions. that is not realistic. its not fair and its not helpful to anyone.
I can see that looking back i have only damaged myself by giving into these unreasonable expectations. i want someone to have control and at the same time i fight anyone or anything that tries to control me. I fight people who are trying to help me understand all this. i realize thatI hear only what i want to hear. I didn’t want to hear the truth i didn’t want to have to grow up and face responsibility. i didn’t want any thing but to be happy. And with in that i was not happy. I’m sorry if i keep saying the same things too. Like i said i’m not even sure if I’m going to send this to you.
I keep going back and rereading this as i know that my answers are here on this page. I am feeling a little better by having written this even if it never comes to anything. I have failed you on all this but worse i have failed myself. i have let myself down and allowed myself to get to a state of such disarray that i can’t even see straight.
I feel like even now i am putting the pressure on you and i am truly not trying to do that. I guess i just felt the need to get some closure or at least try to explain to you what has been going on with me. I’m sorry if that is selfish and puts you in a bad position. i just really need to get this out of my head in order to move on.June 5, 2014 at 11:19 am #58164MayraLunaParticipantDear @hmvg,
I commend you for being able to be so open, vulnerable, and honest in your writing. I too am going through a recent break-up (5 weeks ago), and I too wanted to write a letter to let this guy know how hurt I am (was), and I wanted him to understand the implications of his abrupt departure. [Side note: I also posted a thread about potentially writing the letter, but I felt so embarrassed that I took it down because I realized I had the answers in me all along, and I chose to make zero contact.]
Much like yours, it was like having a rug pulled beneath me. Though, in being honest with myself, I would be lying if I said I didn’t see this coming. It was coming alright. I knew we had grown apart and I knew that he used me as a source of happiness and escape from his dark and miserable condition. and in turn, I used him as a source of validation and the kind of person I am, I like to feel like I am wanted, appreciated, (though, who doesn’t like to be appreciated.) Nevertheless, I was too accommodating to him and to his commitment-phobia… still I mistreated myself and my heart in the process. I put his needs above my own. I know that now, and I am better because of that. Though I am learning and I am working on my wellness and my sanity throughout this process. After nights of crying and wallowing, I can say with much self-respect and pride that I have not cried or felt so low in the last 8 days, (it’s definitely progress for me) though, If I do end up having a crying bout or a feeling of sorrow, I will just feel it out and let is pass. After all, we are human beings, and we are sensitive. My point of sharing my own experience is to let you know that you are not alone, and although you may not see the light at the end of the tunnel, I am here to tell you that there is no light at the end of the tunnel YOU ARE THAT LIGHT…. It is within YOU! Don’t put yourself in a tunnel, be your own source of happiness and your own light. I know that the repeated advice is for one to work on themselves during a breakup/heartache/heartbreak, but it is true. If it’s one thing I have learned from good men out there is that they want a partner who is self-aware, self-assured, and confident. Yes, it is wonderful to be vulnerable with your partner when you reach that level, but that vulnerability ought not be confused with emotional dependency. It is a fine line and I think a lot of people confuse the two.If you are going to send him this letter, consider the following:
Can you move on without having to send him this letter?
You say you don’t want a reaction/response, but your letter is very emotion-filled, how could you not warrant a response?
Do you want hime to sympathize with your pain? Think of how he left you so abruptly. Does he deserve to even have contact with you?
Lastly, be gentle with yourself. You keep blaming yourself for the ended relationship, and you are not leaving room for him to own up to his role in this. Relationships are HARD and they require work on both ends. This was not your “fault”.
You seem like a wonderful person who just needs to love herself a bit more, and I am certain that you are worthy of the love that you desire, you are worth it. The self-love and sense of awareness is not so that you replace the love you deserve from a partner, but rather, for you to understand and truly believe that you deserve better, and to remove yourself from situations that do not agree with what you deserve.I wish you much love and healing on your journey. I am on it too, and I am doing so much better, better than I could have imagined, and it is because of what I just told you.
I am going to share one of the best thoughts that have helped me:
“I wish i could show you that when you are lonely or in darkness the astonishing light of your own being” – Hafiz
June 5, 2014 at 1:41 pm #58174hmvgParticipantThank you Myra, I really needed to hear that. It feels good to know there are others out there going through the same thing. Its all so very new and now to me it just keeps hurting. I do see teeny tiny steps of healing each day. Today is better than yesterday tomorrow will be better than today. I feel like I have the answer’s and yet It’s so hard to live them and let them in. I do beat myself up and I do admit that in that letter I am placing a lot of the blame on myself. Its how I feel right now and yet I do know that there was damage on his side as well. In this specific circumstance there were many other issues I was dealing with that I felt led to the demise of this recent back together with the ex. I felt the need to purge it all out of me. If I didn’t my head was going to explode. This wasn’t so much about getting him to forgive me but more to forgive myself and in that I wanted to share with him what I was truly going through. I did end up sending it and am ok with that decision. I knew I would never begin to heal if I didn’t. I’m not looking for an answer from him or his help but more so to know that I put out there everything I was so afraid to admit to myself and to him. Even though he did leave me high and dry in my time of need I wanted to close this door and let out what was definitely tearing me apart inside. I will admit that previously I had done the same to him due to all this mental anguish I was going through. Weather or not I’m right or wrong on this I guess I will have to continue to let the universe make that decision and let it be what it is.
June 5, 2014 at 6:26 pm #58198MayraLunaParticipantI totally understand your needing to send that out. I hope you feel a weight lifted. I am glad you are on your way to healing. Now focus on getting that heart right, your mind right, and you will feel so much better in due time. Now is the perfect opportunity for you to think carefully about what you want for yourself, you have a fresh start, don’t let that progress go to waste. You got this!
June 6, 2014 at 9:16 am #58245HannahParticipantAs I was reading this, I couldn’t help but notice that every single thing you said was something I have said to my boyfriend. I too went through the worst time in my life and took out everything on him, not realizing that I was being way too co-dependent and lost myself by letting go of my independent identity in the relationship. I had no idea who I was anymore, but I knew that this was not the girl he fell in love with. I asked him over and over why he wouldn’t help me or why he didn’t care when I was the one pushing him away by relying on him to make me happy and feel good about myself, when that should have been coming from me.
I have been with my boyfriend off and on for two years now, and we’ve been to hell and back. But I love him like no other and we’re working on things. Things have been hard, especially when he wouldn’t talk to me. He did it to give me and himself space, even though those were the times I wanted him the most. You need to figure things out within yourself. I can say surrounding myself with people who love and support me, and also meditating, reading, and doing mindful breathing did me wonders. Go out with friends. Do things to remind yourself of who you were before you met your boyfriend, because that is the girl he loves. I can tell you that this man loves you, and he is not giving up, he just can’t take the shit that you give him anymore. Take time to yourself and learn to love yourself again.
I have come a long way in these past months and I know you will too. I would wake up every day wondering why I was going through what I went through, and why he wasn’t there for me. Now I am excited about life and all of the possibilities it has to offer each day. You will get through this. The sooner you change for the better, the sooner it will take to work on your relationship by showing your man you’re the girl he loves. It doesn’t have to be the end, it’s a new beginning for you.July 21, 2018 at 6:35 pm #218041TinaParticipantI read this and realize that I’m going through the same thing. My back story though is a little different. I met him through tinder and at the time my mom, brother and I were going through a hard time. Don’t get me wrong. I loved him and very much still do love him, but here’s my story. Met through tinder and I fell in love with him within three days. Sounds stupid, and I know it was just words but to me they were emore than just words. His words held promises and finality in them. On the fifth day he said I love you and that was while he was emailing me, and messaging me through Facebook because he was underway. He always found time to message me in the morning, throughout the day and at night. He was perfectly imperfect. Met him about a month later and I knew then that I didn’t want to spend my life with anyone else, but him. We made plans to get married. Decided on starting on having a baby. Nothing could bring me down. Until my family got an eviction notice, and everything felt like it was falling apart. He was there. He held me when I cried. Took me away for a few days to just be happy spend with him. He was my source of happiness. He helped with bills, and yeah that was a plus, but it was him being a shoulder to cry on to tell everything too. He became my best friend. About three months in he had to leave for deployment and I didn’t have my best friend beside me. I knew what his job entailed, and I just wanted him to make sure he comes back home safely to me. So for a while my mom, brother and I stayed at different people’s houses, and even stayed at a hotel for a month .I never disclosed to him what was going on because he was fighting for our country and what I was going through seemed not as significant. With mom making little income and me too at times we had to rely on his income, and it was hard because at the end he would give to us and not have enough for him, and that was so selfish of me to even let him do that. He had decided that him and I should move in together and I wanted that. Not because of the stability, but because i loved him more than I had loved anyone else in this world. I found out I was pregnant and that they wanted me to terminate it because the baby wouldn’t survive, but I kept my baby until two weeks later I had a miscarriage. I never let on to him that I was pregnant or what I was going through because again he needed to focus and not worry if I could or couldn’t take care of myself while he’s gone. When I finally did tell him three months before he came back that started the demise of our relationship. He was furious that I didn’t tell him that we were homeless, and most importantly furious that I didn’t communicate with him about my miscarriage. He had every right to be. I don’t blame him. I thought I was doing the right thing, but I was pushing him away. He deserved better than that. He came back to his and I new place and I thought wveeveryth was good. For two weeks while he was on leave we stayed by each other’s side, and loved on each other. Deciding to make another baby. Twister? My mom and brother moved in with us because they had no where to go. I knew how he felt about family moving in with us, but how could I say no to the person who gave me life and raised me the best she could as a single mother? I took me a whole to see how selfish and inconsiderate I was towards him and his feelings and this too left to the end of our relationship, but it was things that built up over time. In a sense he was taking care of me, my brother and mom. That wasn’t his job and I shouldn’t have never allowed him to do that. He gave me signs that he wasn’t happy and he wanted things to change, but I wanted things my way, and now that he’s gone and now that I had our daughter and she’s gone and by gone my daughter died. I just wish I did things differently .While he does have his share of why our relationship is no more. I feel as though I’m the main cause. Though, to be fair during my whole second pregnancy he decided not to be involved, and he pushed me away when our daughter needed him the most. Even when she was born he never once came to see her, and I blame him, but I blame myself too. Was I really that unbearable that he can’t be around his own child? Am I a terrible person? I mean I texted him, called and even called his ship, but he refused them all. That hurt a lot too. I want to hate him, and I want to scream at him, but all I feel towards him is undeniable love. Wanting us to try and make things right. Don’t we owe it to our daughter to try? I don’t know. I let him carry my burdens from the beginning not realizing he needed me too. I’ll forever be sorry that I didn’t see that sooner. Maybe if I did I would still be cuddle up to and sleeping next to the man I love every night. Maybe we would be married by now. I guess I’ll never know. I hope one day our paths will cross again and we can start over and be what each other needs and wants.
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