How do I navigate this?
>want to break up with girlfriend
>both are 26 years old
>started dating November 2023
>we live together and have a 12 month lease we needed to pay in advance, paid a month ago. Flat is a one bed flat (living room, kitchen, bathroom, bedroom - bedroom and living room about the same size).
>share friend circles (as she didn't have many friends in the city when we met, she had just immigrated)

We've not had a major fallout or anything, but it's clear the love we have for each other is waning. We're more "apathetically existing in the same space" at the moment.

To me, in theory, it seems possible for us to make our flat into a two-bed (and one of us gets a bed for the living room), and ideally we'd maintain friendship circles and transition to "friends".

However, looking online, everyone (at least, on reddit) seems to suggest anything *except* going no contact is bad.

>>33310956 (OP) (me)
And, to clarify, I guess we'd move out of the flat and not live together once we're able to and the 11 months are up. I'm not suggesting we live together forever still.

>>33310956 (OP)
This is shocking but reddit isn't entirely wrong here. You do need to go no contact to heal and get over her.

However, as one of the best books in self-help says "Love is an action not a verb"
>We're more "apathetically existing in the same space" at the moment.
Is this happening more because you two aren't putting in the work to actually be romantic? Like planning dates and doing spontaneous outings.
Living with an ex is going to be hell. Might as well give it one last go, before going through all that.

>>33310956 (OP)
>>33310962
So you moved in together, "aren't feeling the love" after just one month, and you want to break up already? At 26?

You are incredibly immature for your age. If you're failing this badly at this relationship, no other relationship is going to work out for you. Why not put in some effort to rekindle things with her? Stop being a dumbass. This is seriously one of the most idiotic and lame things I've ever read, and you're too old to be acting like this.

Do you give up this easily with everything else in your life? You're going to be miseable.

>>33311894
No, the timeline is:
>Started dating: Nov 2022
>Moved in together: June 2023
>Renewed Lease: June 2025 (until June 2026)
>Stopped feeling the love: July 2025, though if I'd been more introspective I should have realised things were fading a few months ago.
Sorry, should have made that more clear.

>>33311912
Ah. That makes more sense.

Even still, try to rebuild things with her. You've got 11 more months to go, might as well. Do you really want to put yourself in a situation where she's going out on dates or even bringing guys home to fuck? I've seen this happen to couples and it is never a good thing. Maybe right now you think it won't affect you, but trust me, it will. And if you bang other chicks that will affect her too, and you will both feel hurt, resentful and bitter at each other. I would highly recommend you try to rekindle your relationship for the next year. If it doesn't work out by the time your lease is up, then go ahead and break up. Until then, I'd say hell no.

And yes, no contact is the best strategy. It's really necessarily to avoid pain as much as possible. I cannot imagine a worse hell than being forced to live with your ex.

>>33312086
Probably good advice. Current issues:
>often get into arguments (I think she has PMDD, and she suspects she might as well), these arguments get MUCH worse whenever she needs to take a break in birth control, and I already know it's that time of month when we're in that kind of argument.
>arguments always end with her questioning why we're together, and me trying to make amends, eventually apologizing for whatever she was mad at me for.
>In these arguments, she's never apologised for anything, though I'm generally very chill so I'm not sure if there's anything she should apologise for (though maybe I'd expect that in 2-3 years it's likely something could have happened she should have apologised for).
>As an aside, no shared interests really - she's into volleyball and I tried it and wasn't a fan. I'm into board games, RPGs, philosophy discussin groups, etc. and she's not liked any of those (other than one or two board games). I'd say there's about 10 friends of my wider friend circle who she's also quite close with, and the time we spend together is often at group gatherings with those people.
>I'd say at the moment, at least, I tend not to be particularly excited by her presence. Worse, on occasion I've noticed that I feel a very low-but-constant feeling or irritation when she's around? E.g. I might be sitting on the sofa reading or writing and then if she comes in and sits next to me, I don't think "yay, my girlfriend is here", but rather "I want my own space, this is distracting, eh".