People online as well as dating experts have been shedding light on a new relationship issue they’ve called ‘Breadcrumbing’, and it’s something that might completely change the way you view your dates.
Relationships can be tricky
It seems like there’s a new relationship trend or label that takes over the internet every once in a while, and it can often get overwhelming having to keep up with all of them.
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But these discussions are really just about learning how to navigate new relationships or stir clear from the toxic ones altogether.
It’s an important red flag to look out for
Despite the funny name, ‘breadcrumbing’, as well as other relationship trends, can actually be handy in spotting red flags in people you’re dating.
You wouldn’t want to be at the receiving end of ‘breadcrumbing’ nor would you want to be accidentally doing it to someone else.
What is ‘breadcrumbing’?
The behavior could be a sign that the person doing it isn’t really all that interested in keeping you happy, as it can keep you hanging on to false hope.
‘Breadcrumbing’ is where someone gives another person just enough attention to keep them interested but without any intention of committing to them.
It can be dangerous in the long run
Although the name itself is a new thing, people have been doing this for years.
Over time, the behavior can be detrimental to a relationship, as only being given enough attention to stay with someone without them showing intentions of committing can bring about stress and self-doubt issues.
A relationship expert explained the issue
Talking to Indy100, relationship expert Dr Cortney Warren said, “Breadcrumbing is a manipulation tactic that only benefits one party – the breadcrumber enjoys the romantic attention they receive from you without having to truly invest in the relationship in any real way, as a committed partner would.”
So how do you avoid this?
Dr Warren advised that the best way to stop this happening is to confront the person you feel is breadcrumbing you.
She gave an example of what you could say, suggesting, “So I noticed that when I asked you to do something, you don’t seem to respond positively. Or I noticed that when I send you a text message, you just send me an emoji back.”
She gave another example
Another thing Dr Warren suggested you could try and say is, “If you want to have a relationship with me. I would like to be more proactive in seeing each other or communicating and if you don’t, I just like to know that so that I can make better choices for myself.”
Dr Warren said confidence is key
The dating expert reassured that confidence is the key to not fall for breadcrumbing, or to get yourself out of it.
She also shared that at one point or another, we’ve probably all accidentally breadcrumbed people we’re not interested in.
Perspective and introspection will help you through it
Dr Warren added, “Having some perspective that all of us are on this journey, that sometimes we do things that hurt other people intentionally and sometimes we do them because we’re just not very skilled at doing it another way or we’re not strong enough in our own skin to tell the truth, or we’re too afraid of hurting their feelings.”
