“A woman he was having an affair with handed me the underwear he left at her house.”

I'm an Associate Editor on BuzzFeed's Pop Culture team who spends my days fangirling over all my favorite TV shows and movies.

"He would sometimes make comments about how, if he ever dated again, he’d want an 'older woman' because they were more 'mature.' He also believed that because he made more money, I should carry most of the responsibility at home. Looking back now, those were signs I shouldn’t ignore.A few months after we broke up, he ended up with the 'older woman' and is now married to her. From what I hear, it’s very much her way or the highway, and even the kids struggle with the relationship. Hearing that only confirmed for me that I made the right choice by trusting my gut.For the first time, I chose myself. I went back to school, became a nurse, focused on my health, and started building the life I deserved."

"Turns out he had a boys’ trip to California planned for that week and didn’t want to tell me until after he came home, knowing I’d be angry and hurt he didn’t choose to see me when he could have. He figured I’d forgive him and get over it, as I had always done, once he got back.

And I suddenly understood that would be my future with him. I’d do something to annoy or infuriate him and walk in a minefield for weeks, waiting for an explosion. He’d upset me and then just wait for my forgiveness. A perfect repeat of my parents’ marriage.

"I remember feeling so small and so betrayed. But my life turned out to be happy, and I'm sure he's still a lying piece of trash. Beyond this post, I don't really think about him at all."

"In the end, to mentally deal with packing up and moving without the extra stress, I basically cut contact with him for two months, moved, and started my job. Then we talked and broke up on the phone. I mailed him the ring back and never looked back."

"Apparently, that was no good either because it made her feel bad about herself, thereby, in her mind, justifying shutting down and throwing jabs instead of trying to understand and solve the issue at hand. Basically, when every mention of your feelings being hurt by their actions turns into a full-on criminal trial, it starts to feel like they value their ego over your connection, and anything you try to build on that foundation is going to crumble. You can’t fix things with people who are more focused on blame than solutions."

Responses have been edited for length/clarity.