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[–]SuperSlavisWife7 points8 points  (0 children) | Copy Link

Also, remember that some men need to recharge. We know Sigmas, autists and schizoid types may need to, but more common and less obvious are everyday introverts, men who use their brain a lot at work, extreme empaths, or men who are not the top dog in their current jobs. Many such men come home tired, not necessarily physically, but mentally, emotionally and socially. He's not ignoring you: he's just enjoying a little bit of headspace and will be back in the real world once he's recharged a bit. Nagging will not make him recharge any faster, it will have the complete opposite effect.

PS: If you want him to recharge faster or to just be close to him, try this:

1: Be aware of what he needs to relax and have it ready when he is home.

2: Be mostly quiet, let him have his headspace.

3: Fetch his favourite drink.

4: Be with him in the room, or in the very next room, doing your own thing. Eventually he will approach you or invite you, verbally or nonverbally, once he's ready.

5: Accept that some days he will not recharge until he's been to bed. Keep peaceful, keep him "stocked" for food and entertainment, let him get on with it and hope that he will be better in the morning.

Important. If your man is drained from the moment he gets in until he goes to bed every day, does not open himself up to you even if you let him be and make sure he's cared for, and only really seems himself after a whole 24 hours off work, he might be on a path to depression, if not already depressed. After a week or two observing, if the pattern is there, talk to him about work and find out what is hurting him. He might not know it yet, but he may need to get out of there ASAP. OTOH, if he's only really himself when he gets in from work and after a while at home the behaviour begins, then the source of malaise is his home or family life. This may not be you, it may be concern about a relative, the area you live in... anything. Again, observe for a week or two, then ask him to open up to you about it. Men often live with mild chronic depression and anxiety in complete quiet. They can spend years in this pattern and hardly know there's anything wrong, only to have a meltdown, a midlife crisis or a sudden suicide attempt when the despair hits them harder than usual. So look after him and make sure his life is worth living, not just when it comes to you, but when it comes to work, family, everything.

[–]cats_or_get_out 6 points6 points [recovered] | Copy Link

I had become resistible

Ouch. I know I've been there (again and again)!

Thanks for posting this article! It's a good reminder.

[–]L1vewarePr0blem30 / LTR 4yrs4 points5 points  (0 children) | Copy Link

Haven't we all?!

All her posts are such good reminders...they typically have different "problems" at the beginning but the solutions are fittingly the same.

[–]TempestTcup 3 points3 points [recovered] | Copy Link

Yes, that sentence hit me hard, too!

[–]MoriKei21 | LTR | 2 Years3 points4 points  (5 children) | Copy Link

Laura provides such great advice - and at such a relevant time for me too! I struggle a lot with feeling ignored when my boyfriend is playing video games. He's not ignoring me - I'm just not doing anything so I want him to pay attention to me! This article was a great reminder that I need to make myself busy and pay attention to my hobbies and what makes me happy. Thank you for sharing this!

[–][deleted] 0 points1 point  (3 children) | Copy Link

Knitting. Sit in the room with him and knit. Just enjoy sharing the same space for a while

[–]MoriKei21 | LTR | 2 Years0 points1 point  (2 children) | Copy Link

Ooh, I've always wanted to learn to knit! I learned the basics of crotchet awhile ago but I think I might've forgotten them by now. I wanted to learn cross-stitch but I think learning to knit would be more functional. Thank you for the recommendation!

[–][deleted] 0 points1 point  (1 child) | Copy Link

its an excellent hobby and theres millions of free resources on the internet. look into the [Ravelry](www.ravelry.com) community

[–][deleted] 1 point2 points  (0 children) | Copy Link

I love ravelry for all my crochet projects. Sadly I haven't done it in a while but I've been so busy with other good things.

[–][deleted] 3 points4 points  (0 children) | Copy Link

He wasn’t so much ignoring me as soothing himself with the TV

How easily we tend to take actions of others as a direct reaction to us. I have done this so often. It's not always about you. Just thinking about this shift in thought process makes me cringe. I can't believe I used to do that.

[–]jade_cat1 point2 points  (0 children) | Copy Link

I was the self-appointed martyr who had to keep everything together.

This sentence hits very close to home. My husband is very laid-back, and sometimes I feel that if I allow myself to let go and be as laid-back, even for a short time, the tasks will pile up and I won't be able to catch up on them. But in the end, what matters most is our happiness, and my husband is much happier if I am more laid-back and cheerful rather than a perfectionist who wants to control everything, have a perfectly neat house and have all items on the to-do list checked off. Laura Doyle's advice is very, very good when she says "Follow his lead".

You can kill a man, but you can't kill an idea.

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