How to get away from a possessive boyfriend or girlfriend
bhian asks: I’m afraid right now. I have a boyfriend who is so possessive. He always gets jealous, and hits me after. How can I break up with him? My kids are afraid with him also.
Hi bhian –
I really have two answers for you. One is something I sent to someone else, about how to break up as gently and kindly as possible. But before I get to that, I need to bring up this other issue.
Jealousy is fine. I get very jealous when I see my human friend Handsome petting other dogs. There’s actually a compliment in there.
But a man hitting a woman is NOT okay. And terrifying children isn’t either. So my first and biggest concern is to get you and them safe.
If you lived where I do, I’d know who you could call. But I don’t know where you live. So I want you to find a time you can be by yourself, and to call the police and ask them what services are available for abused mothers and children.
Now your boyfriend might not ever strike you or the kids again. And if so, that’s great. But please, as soon as you can, find out what services are out there. And keep that information. You never know when you’ll need it.
Okay, so onto the ‘funner’ part of it:
I hate breakups. I’ve never really had one, but I’ve suffered from them, whenever Handsome’s had any. And he hates them – whether they’re his idea or hers. Both feel really bad. But that’s just one of those things almost all humans go through, and so the best thing to do is to get it over with as kindly and as easily as possible. Here are some suggestions: Continue reading