Why Men Leave Women They Love
When a man leaves a woman even though he loves her, his reasons are deeply meaningful to him.
Antonio Guillem / Shutterstock What makes a man leave a woman he loves?
While the reasons men leave women they still love may vary, there are a few distinct reasons they may choose to walk away instead of sticking around and trying to repair their relationships.
Research suggests that while men and women are very different, there are a few consistent male behaviors women should know about that result in a man deciding he is done, no matter how strongly he cares for someone.
5 Common Reasons Men Leave Women They Love
1. Difficulty connecting emotionally.
While women typically believe that male behavior is not dictated by emotion, the opposite is generally true.
Men require positive emotional connections to want to stay in a relationship. Women often feel the need to tell him everything they feel at a given moment, leaving him drained and unwilling to share his own feelings.
If a man feels like he will get berated for opening up to his partner, he will eventually shut down and turn his emotions inward. This leads to an emotional buildup, causing him to be aloof from both his partner and his own emotions.
Once a man feels alone in a relationship he begins to fall out of love and look around for someone else to meet his emotional needs.
2. Feeling like a project.
Women have a tendency to try and ‘fix’ the man they get into a relationship with. Once a woman feels as though she isn’t getting what she deserves from her man she often will start demanding that he change.
Instead of communicating her needs effectively and calmly, she may fly off the handle or constantly nag her man. Over time, this pressure to change is a strong motivator for a man to move on from the relationship.
If he can’t make you happy consistently, then there is no reason to stay with you. The disrespect involved in wanting him to become someone other than who he really is outweighs his love and will eventually become too much to take.
3. Fear of losing their freedom.
Many people see the fear of losing freedom as a commitment issue, but this isn’t necessarily the case.
If a man feels trapped in a relationship by a woman he loves, but who also always wants to know where he is, what he’s doing, and where he is going, it is less of a fear of commitment and more of a loss of freedom he fears.
Of course, every relationship should include devotion to one another, but it is unreasonable for either partner to treat the other as a child. If you give a man space, he will likely discover he wants to be with you and will have no need to fear losing his freedom.
4. Experiencing a deep betrayal.
Obviously, if a man finds out his partner is cheating on him or is lying to him he will be more likely to leave her behind even though he still loves her.
Men have an easier time dumping women if they find out they have been cheated on and dishonesty closely follows this.
As in any healthy relationship, loyalty and trust are extremely important and can make or break your relationship.
5. Sexual dissatisfaction.
Sex is very important in any romantic relationship. Men are driven by a desire to reproduce and find emotional satisfaction with a partner they enjoy having sex with.
Communication and an open mind can go a long way to keeping the relationship both exciting and sexy. But if the sex is boring and routine a man may find an excuse to leave no matter the amount of love.
Elizabeth Stone is an author, dating coach, and personal development coach who helps women restore themselves in order to improve their relationships.